Deadline Passes For LAUSD Employees To Get Vaccinated For COVID

LOS ANGELES, CA — Monday was the deadline for Los Angeles Unified School District workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and holdouts who did not obtain an exemption face possible termination.

As of Monday night, it was not immediately clear how mand LAUSD employees could be subject to discipline. An LAUSD representative said data was still being compiled.

A Los Angeles Unified spokesperson told City News Service early Monday night, "Employees working in-person in Los Angeles Unified have been vaccinated. There are a few employees who still have until the end of the day today to upload the record of their second vaccine dose. Employees who have not been vaccinated and who have not received reasonable accommodations will be continuing through the dismissal process."

Heading into the November 15 deadline, the school district already had remarkable compliance with 99 percent of district administrators and classroom teachers having already loaded their vaccination status into the district's Daily Pass reporting system. Other employees including administrative assistants, plant managers and cafeteria managers had reach 97 percent compliance by the end of October.

The school district required its employees to have at least one dose of vaccine by Oct. 15, and receive both by Nov. 15, having extended the deadline in October.

In a statement, a district representative said the delay was agreed upon "in order to protect the health and safety of all students and employees and also to ensure that all employees are able to be vaccinated with the COVID- 19 vaccine of their choice.

According to the district's website, employees who fail to meet the vaccination requirement may face "disciplinary action, including but not limited to placement on unpaid leave and/or separation from service."

The district's mandate does allow for employees to seek medical or religious exemptions.

School board member Jackie Goldberg told KNX Newsradio Monday that workers who miss the Monday deadline and are terminated will still be able to get vaccinated and possibly get their jobs back.

"Even if they've been dismissed, if they get vaccinated and they apply to be rehired within a certain period of time, if there's a vacancy in their field, which there very well may be, they will be rehired," she said.

The district issued a statement last month saying, "Our charge remains clear: Los Angeles Unified is committed to providing your child with the best possible education in the safest possible environment. We know children learn and thrive best with in-person instruction where they can interact with their teachers and classmates, participate in extracurricular activities and access the academic and social-emotional supports they deserve."

LAUSD students age 12 and older who take part in in-person extracurricular programs were required to receive their first dose by Oct. 3 and their second no later than Oct. 31. All other students aged 12 and up must receive their first dose by Nov. 21, and their second by Dec. 19.

Younger students will have to receive their first dose no later than 30 days after their 12th birthday, and their second dose no later than eight weeks after turning 12. The district is recommending, but not mandating COVID shots for students aged 5-11.

The mandate applies to all district students, along with charter school students on co-located district school facilities. Students "with qualified and approved exemptions under LAUSD's existing immunization policies" will be exempt.

City News Service