Supervisor Hilda Solis orders all L.A. County employees to get coronavirus vaccine.
Every employee to be inoculated against COVID-19 by Oct. 1 under board chair’s order
All Los Angeles County employees will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by Oct. 1 under an executive order issued by Board of Supervisors Chair Hilda L. Solis.
Concurrently, all employees in the Los Angeles Superior Court system will be required to get vaccinated against COVID-19 once federal officials give full authorization to one of the vaccines in circulation, court officials announced on Thursday.
With the coronavirus again raging, driven by the highly contagious Delta variant, Solis said, “the need for immediate action is great.”
The president of the union representing Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said the union was “blindsided” by the order.
James Wheeler, president of the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, said in a statement Thursday that “we are still examining the complex issues related to” the order.
“ALADS, like other stakeholders, was completely blindsided by this hastily issued order, which will affect more than 100,000 county employees,” Wheeler said. “We believe the Board of Supervisors should have collaborated and communicated with the parties who stand to be impacted by this. Instead, we were notified of this sudden shift in policy overnight via social media.”
According to ALADS, the union had already begun labor
talks with Sheriff Alex Villanueva over a directive requiring deputies to be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. The union’s attorneys are reviewing the order, and ALADS sent a letter to Solis to notify her the union is “asserting its bargaining rights over her decision.”
Solis cited an 18-fold increase in cases and fivefold jump in hospitalizations since June 15, when the county lifted coronavirus restrictions amid falling case rates.
In announcing the executive order Wednesday night, Solis said there will be exemptions for medical and religious purposes — but otherwise, it will apply to all of the county’s 110,000 employees “regardless of the department they serve.”
Solis said the Oct. 1 deadline provides county workers with a timeline in which they can consult with their health care providers.
She also said that, as board chair, she has the power, during a proclaimed local emergency, “to promulgate orders and regulations necessary to provide for the protection of life or property.” On March 4, 2020, the Los Angeles County Health Officer issued a declaration of local health emergency due to COVID-19.
Solis’ order is more sweeping than mandates elsewhere in the country, including the city of Los Angeles and the state of California, which state that government employees get vaccinated or agree to regular testing. Solis’ executive order does not include a testing option.
In her statement, Solis indicated she hopes other employers in the county will follow her lead.
“We are once again demonstrating to employers across the county that we are prepared to lead by example and set a standard for slowing the spread — just as we did when reinstating indoor masking, which has since been emulated by varying degrees by the CDC (the federal Centers for Disease Control), the state and localities across the country,” she said.
“We must all be prepared to come together and do our part to protect one another and get this virus under control once more. We cannot wait another day as this virus continues to upend and dramatically alter the lives of our residents. With today’s executive order, the county is prepared to lead, and I am hopeful other employers across our great county do the same.”
“The court has a duty to protect the people we serve,” Presiding Judge Eric C. Taylor said. “By ensuring a safe workplace, through mandatory vaccination, the court is protecting both its employees who provide essential public services and those who are required to come into a courthouse. Throughout the pandemic, the court has strictly followed public health and CDC guidelines to protect our workforce, justice partners and the public from COVID-19.”
The court’s policy will provide exemptions on medical or religious grounds, and it will review requests for other exemptions on a case-by-case basis. The requirement will take effect when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gives full approval to at least one of the vaccines being administered in the country. The vaccines are currently being distributed under an “emergency use” authorization.
Court employees will be required to submit vaccine verifications through an online portal, and information will be kept confidential, officials said.
“The court’s employees are considered disaster service workers under state law and are required to deliver statutorily mandated, time-sensitive and emergency services in times of local, state and national emergencies such as this global pandemic,” Clerk of Court Sherri Carter said. “People who enter our courthouses are required, and many times ordered, to come to court so it is important that the court do everything possible to protect our workforce and the public we serve.”
Those orders arrived on the heels of Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez’ introduction of a proposal earlier this week, under which proof of at least partial vaccination against COVID-19 would be required to enter public indoor spaces in the city of Los Angeles — including restaurants, bars, gyms, concert venues, movie theaters and even “retail establishments.”
Martinez introduced the motion with Councilman Mitch O’Farrell. It is similar to a policy announced this week in New York City, but would be more restrictive with the inclusion of retail establishments — potentially limiting access to some basic necessities.
The New York policy restricts access only to more entertainment-oriented venues such as indoor restaurants, fitness centers and theaters.
According to O’Farrell’s office, the exact businesses that would fall under the restrictions would be determined during the drafting of the ordinance by city attorneys. No determination has yet been made on whether such retail restrictions would extend to grocery stores.
“We must all be prepared to come together and do our part to protect one another and get this virus under control once more.”
— Hilda L. Solis, Board of Supervisors chair