LOS ANGELES (KNX) — The Kern County Sheriff’s Department posted a recruitment video to its social media pages earlier this week urging Los Angeles County deputies opposed to vaccine mandates to apply for jobs.
“Take back your freedom and apply today to work at the Kern County Sheriff’s Office,” the video said. “You deserve a job that welcomes you, and your values, with open arms.”
The video, published Wednesday, came a day after the L.A. County Board of Supervisors moved to remove COVID-19 vaccination responsibilities from Sheriff Alex Villanueva’s enforcement powers. Villanueva has insisted repeatedly that he will not terminate sheriff’s department staffers who refuse to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
“It makes me sick to my stomach, quite frankly,” Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood said in a Friday news conference, referring to the firing of unvaccinated deputies in other California counties.
“To come to work in the Kern County Sheriff’s Department, we don’t ask you if you’ve been vaccinated, because it’s really none of my business,” Youngblood said. “I just want those employees to know — I want everyone in the state of California to know — that we respect our employees, we value our employees, we value their input. And if they want to come to work here, they’re welcome to come to work here.”
Last month, the Kern County Sheriff’s Department reported significant staffing shortages among sworn officers due to COVID-19. The office released a reminder in late January asking the community to abstain from calling deputies for crimes not currently in progress.
“The Kern County Sheriff’s Office will be conducting our duties as we always have, other than trying to limit in-person contact as much as possible for the protection of both the community and sheriff’s employees from COVID-19,” the news release said.
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