(The Center Square) – The King County Committee of the Whole discussed a bill that would provide a priority pathway for former county employees who were separated or resigned due to noncompliance with the county’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn proposed Motion 2023-0094 in hopes that the legislation would allow the county to bring back a number of deputies that were lost because of the mandate.
There were 314 employees who separated from the county rather than comply with the vaccination mandate that County Executive Dow Constantine issued in August 2021. According to the King County Department of Human Resources, eight employees chose to retire, 25 employees resigned, and 281 employees were involuntarily separated due to noncompliance with the mandate.
The King County Sheriff’s Office had 33 departures as a result of the executive order.
“We have a lot of vacancies, both in the sheriff’s department, the jail, and other areas in the county and so it’s for my members consideration to look at [the motion] and consider whether there should be a policy shift on this issue,” Dunn said in the Committee of the Whole meeting on July 19.
Council central staff said that all former employees are welcome to apply for open positions within the county. They would have to follow the standard application process, rather than through a priority pathway, unless Motion 2023-0094 is approved.
Council staff said prior experience would likely give them a leverage in the application process. Vaccinations for the COVID-19 virus are no longer required for new hires at King County.
Fellow Councilmember Claudia Balducci said the motion needs to include an obligation to the public.
“I didn’t hear one word about our commitment to the people we serve and keeping them safe,” Balducci said. “I only heard about the impact on the employees.”
Dunn called Balducci’s statement a “dramatic minimization of the scope of the problem,” adding that the loss of officers in the sheriff’s department and county jail correlate with increasing crime throughout the region.
The proposed motion would also request the King County executive to provide an oral report on the progress of a priority pathway program to the Committee of the Whole no later than Sept. 1, 2023. The next Committee of the Whole meeting is set for Aug. 16.
