The Los Angeles County Sheriff said he will not enforce the vaccine passport proposals passed by the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday because he would lose about 10% of his workforce.
The sheriff’s department budget was reduced by $145.5 million last summer and Sheriff Alex Villanueva says already risks losing hundreds of officers and he’s not willing to lose another batch by enforcing the city’s vaccine mandate.
“This is like the worst of two worlds right here, so we have to pick and choose,” said the sheriff.
He added: “I don’t want to be in a position to lose 5, 10% of my workforce overnight on a vaccine mandate.”
“I’m not forcing anyone,” said Villanueva. “The issue has become so politicized. There are entire groups of employees that are willing to be fired and laid off, rather than get vaccinated.”
The new vaccine mandate, considered one of the strictest in the country, makes vaccine passports compulsory for all city employees.
Villanueva has previously hit headlines for refusing to enforce mask mandates because they are, in his opinion, not “backed by science.”
