Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers AssociationLos Angeles County Professional Peace Officers Association

Greg Torres

COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate – Impasse Declared

by

9/29/21: Through yesterday afternoon and evening, the County and the Coalition of County Unions (CCU), including PPOA and ALADS, met yet again to address impacts of the pending COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate. PPOA and the other unions of the CCU believe the County is seriously underestimating the impacts of this mandate to their workforce. During this negotiation session, progress on the details of proposed policies and protocols could not be attained. For this reason, the member unions of the CCU today filed IMPASSE documents! 
 
Here is a synopsis of the facts as PPOA knows them:
 
  • The COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate Executive Order is still in place and requires of all County employees to demonstrate proof of vaccination by October 1, 2021
  • Negotiations on the impacts of the COVID-19 Vaccination are at impasse, without resolution at this time
  • No one will be disciplined/suspended/fired on October 1, 2021 as a result of not being vaccinated against COVID-19
  • The County wants all employees to register in the Fulgent Genetics website/tracking system, REGARDLESS of vaccination status, by October 1, 2021, in order to gather more accurate data on the number of employees who are vaccinated, are not vaccinated, and the anticipated number or medical/religious exemptions needing to be addressed
  • The report back from the CEO to the Board of Supervisors at the meeting of September 28, 2021 reflected the following numbers:
    • 67,273 County Employees have registered with the Fulgent Genetics tracking system
    • 58,865 County Employees of those registered are fully vaccinated,
    • 1,627 County Employees of those registered are partially vaccinated,
    • 5,966 County Employees of those registered are not vaccinated, and
    • Approximately 44,700 County Employees have not yet registered
  •  
  • PPOA has been allocating extensive resources to the COVID-19 pandemic and related legal issues since March of 2020, meeting with staff and legal team twice a week
  • The “law of the land” regarding vaccination mandates is currently based on a 1905 Supreme Court Decision, Jacobson v. Massachusetts. This case has been unsuccessfully challenged over forty (40+) times related to the COVID-19 vaccination mandates nation-wide.
  • PPOA has gathered legal opinions and consulted with counsel from the Fraternal Order of Police, the California Coalition of Law Enforcement Association, and the Peace Officers Research Association of California, all verifying the legal parameters of Jacobson v. Massachusetts, have no perceivable challenges at this time,
  • The County, as an employer, has the legal right to your vaccination status
  • PPOA and the associations above have dedicated their legal teams to tracking, monitoring, and exchanging information related to lawsuits filed within the state and country, in efforts to identify changes in strategy and/or potential judicial action  
 
Speaking of strategy and lawsuits, PPOA, as well as many other unions, have become aware of various law firms operating statewide to step into the legal fracas on this issue. All we can say, is BUYER BEWARE! As described above, PPOA is utilizing every legal resource possible in our strategies. The current legal atmosphere does not bode well in challenging COVID-19 related mandates. Groups asking individuals for “donations” or “up-front fees” to fund temporary restraining orders, or other legal action may not have your best interest.
 
PPOA, as an organization, while an advocate of safety in the workplace, believes the the COVID-19 Executive Order, mandating all County employees to be vaccinated by October 1, 2021, to be draconian, resource intensive, and an unprecedented process which threatens the employment of County employees unnecessarily. PPOA and the CCU have maintained a collective stance:
 
  • against any COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate that includes discipline
  • continue to demand accommodation and/or testing options for our members who may not be defined within medical and/or religious exemptions
  • continue to address with the County the unreasonableness of the timeline 
 
However, with the information above, and the threat of potential discipline to members being ordered to comply with the policy, PPOA is advising members to consider their personal decisions carefully regardless of vaccination status. IF ORDERED by your respective Department (District Attorney, Medical Examiner-Coroner, or Sheriff) to register in the Fulgent tracking system, non-compliance could result in allegations of insubordination and future discipline. Only you can make this very personal decision. 
 
Continue to monitor PPOA communications as further updates will be provided following additional negotiations meetings.

 

COVID-19 Accommodation Forms Distributed

by

As predicted last Friday (9/17/21), the Department of Human Resources, over the strenuous objections of PPOA and other CCU members, distributed COVID-19 Accommodation Forms and Guidelines this evening. This action, despite the fact that negotiations have not yet concluded, is inappropriate and from a PPOA perspective, represents bad faith negotiations. At this time, PPOA recommends members familiarize themselves with the provided forms and guidelines, as they may be needed when the vaccination policy is finalized. Notwithstanding this development, negotiations continue and details of this policy are still fluid. 
 
Regarding these Accommodation forms, unfortunately, negotiations with the County are incomplete and ever-changing, leaving PPOA very little additional information to offer at this time. Should you have any questions, concerns, or comments regarding the forms, PPOA highly recommends contacting the LA County Department of Human Resources at (213) 974-2406.

COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate – UPDATE 9/18/21

by

This week, PPOA, along with ALADS and the other unions of the County Coalition of Unions (CCU) continued impact bargaining negotiations related to the proposed COVID-19 vaccination policy. PPOA, as an organization, is an unyielding advocate during these negotiations, fighting for all of our members regardless of personal beliefs or positions on this issue, as due process was bypassed, and your rights to employment are being challenged. 
 
The PPOA Board of Directors is following a legal, political, and collaborative strategy with our labor partners, ALADS, and the other members of the CCU. We have thoroughly researched legal options and opinions from the top legal defense attorneys utilized by our coalition partners (FOP, California Coalition of Law Enforcement, Southern California Alliance of Law Enforcement, Peace Officer’s Research Association of California) and monitor numerous lawsuits nationwide for any nuggets of knowledge which may adjust our strategy. 
 
The COVID-19 vaccination mandate issue has caused more confusion between the Chief Executive Office, County Departments, the unions and our members, than any other concern in recent times. The Board of Supervisors set direction which the County Departments do not have the resources to accomplish by October 1. The CEO’s negotiators present information from the Department of Human Resources which is complex, convoluted, and sometimes incorrect. The Sheriff has said “I must state my belief this is a labor issue which must be worked out between the unions and the Board of Supervisors.” Who at the County can provide clear direction? This is the problem.
 
PPOA is doing our best to provide membership with the best information available. The problem is, there is very little! Negotiations are slow going, lengthy, and far between, as scheduling with the County is difficult based on their negotiations with other unions also.
 
Please be patient as this confusion is generating voluminous inquiries. PPOA will continue to provide factual information as it develops. Should you have any questions or concerns not being addressed, be sure to email PPOA at info@ppoa.com.

COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate UPDATE – 8/26/21

by

Over the last two days, PPOA, together with the County Coalition of Unions (CCU), has participated in lengthy meetings, well into the late evening hours, with the County regarding the COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
 
As described in the PPOA update of 08/24/21 (click here to read), executives of the Sheriff’s Department recently received the anticipated County communication over PPOA’s objections of the previous day. 
 
On 08/25/21, the Sheriff’s Department distributed an even more confusing synopsis of the County’s intentions, to all of its employees, not just those affected by the CA Department of Public Health vaccine mandate, which went into effect on August 23, 2021.  
 
An additional meeting was held this morning where the County and Sheriff’s Department acknowledged the inappropriate communication as evidence of a “plan” to demonstrate efforts to comply with the timeline of the CA Department of Public Health mandate. After negotiations, an agreement was reached with the County and Department that they would provide further clarifying language to be distributed in the very near future.
 
Without going into tedious details, these negotiation meetings have demonstrated that the County and its Departments are not fully prepared to implement the Executive Order in the near future as planned. These last two days of negotiations have identified many concerns, including: 
  • Numerous contradictions within their own documents;
  • Security concerns regarding the new Fulgent Genetics vaccine/testing tracking software;
  • The time restrictions and unavailability of resources for members attempting to comply with being “fully vaccinated” by the proposed deadline of October 1;
  • The substantial lack of resources within each County Department to process the anticipated submission of voluminous exemption applications, and
  • The continued conversations of alternatives to discipline 
 
PPOA’s negotiation team includes both sworn and non-sworn representatives as well as legal counsel. Additionally, PPOA staff have now returned to scheduled meetings, twice a week, to stay current in all aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related negotiations. This dedication of PPOA resources will continue to supplement and enhance the efforts of the CCU to negotiate reasonable terms as well as mitigate impacts on PPOA membership regarding this issue.
 
PPOA will be meeting with other member unions of the CCU tomorrow morning to continue internal discussion related to the negotiations with the County. Please monitor PPOA communications for accurate and timely information. PPOA will continue to provide our membership with correct information as the impacts of the vaccine mandates are negotiated.