Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced that he will pay unvaccinated police officers from other states $5,000 if they relocate to the Sunshine State to work, as cops across the U.S. continue to leave their posts in droves over COVID vaccine mandates.
‘We’re actually actively working to recruit out-of-state law enforcement, because we do have needs in our police and our sheriff’s departments,’ the governor told Fox News on Sunday.
‘In the next legislative session, I’m going to hopefully sign legislation that gives a $5,000 bonus to any out-of-state law enforcement that relocates in Florida,’ he told the network’s Sunday Morning Futures program.
Then, addressing officers in cities like New York, Seattle and Minneapolis, DeSantis said: ‘If you’re not being treated well, we’ll treat you better here.’
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that he will pay unvaccinated police officers from other states $5,000 if they relocate to the Sunshine State to work, as cops across the US continue to leave their posts in droves over COVID vaccine mandates
The governor further explained his reasoning behind the prospective legislation during a news conference in North Venice the next day, saying Monday that his office is looking to make the most out of other cities’ mistakes regarding mandates on law enforcement officials and scoop up the disillusioned staffers for himself.
‘We are looking to capitalize off a lot of communities across our county who have turned their back on law enforcement, who aren’t providing them the support,’ the politician told attendees outside the event.
DeSantis, an outspoken critique of both vaccine and mask mandates, emphasized that it’s these mistreated officers, from cities with mandates like New York, Chicago and Minneapolis, and their current situations that inspired him to devise such a plan.
The governor, who reinstated the state’s ban on mask mandates in schools last month, also specified that the proposed legislation is intended to boost morale among these members of law enforcement who may or may not have faced persecution for their beliefs in the past year – especially in recent months.
‘You can fill important needs for us and we will compensate you as a result,’ DeSantis said, referring to law enforcement jobs that were potentially jeopardized by the slew of recent vaccine mandates in cities like Chicago, Seattle and New York.
Chicago could face a public safety crisis as one-third of the force could lose their jobs over the jab mandate, with an epidemic of violent crimes and gun violence currently plaguing the city
Less than two weeks ago, Chicago’s powerful police union boss, John Catanzara, seemingly dared the city’s Democrat mayor, Lori Lightfoot, to suspend up of half the crime-plagued city’s cops amid pushback over an impending vaccine mandate on civic workers – which has since come and gone.
Catanzara, the head of the Chicago Branch of the Fraternal Order of Police, explicitly instructed officers to defy the mandate just days before deadline hit on October 16, despite the mayor’s assurance that doing so would result in them being put on unpaid leave.
As of last week, a little over one-third of the 12,770-strong Chicago Police Department (CPD) – more than 4,000 officers – has yet to comply with the mayor’s request, as an unprecedented crime wave wreaks havoc on the Windy City.
The officers who have refused to get vaccinated at this point must be tested for COVID-19 twice a week on their own time and expense – until December 31, when they will be required to be vaccinated or be placed on unpaid leave.
Meanwhile, the city has started seeking recruits from suburban Illinois to fill the potential staffing shortage.
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is also facing backlash from disgruntled officers over imposed vaccine mandates.
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is also facing backlash from disgruntled officers over imposed vaccine mandates
Last week, Seattle officers were seen hanging ‘don’t tread on me’ Gadsden flags – a symbol of American patriotism originating from the Revolutionary War – from their cruisers in protest of a citywide vaccine mandate that took effect last Monday
Just last week, slews of Seattle officers were seen hanging ‘Don’t Tread On Me’ Gadsden flags from their cruisers in protest of a citywide vaccine mandate that took effect last Monday.
The city similarly required its city employees – including cops – to show proof of vaccination, or risk losing their jobs.
Seattle police spokesperson Sgt. Randy Huserik told DailyMail.com that officers who did not turn in their vaccine verification paperwork by the city’s deadline will likely ‘be terminated.’
‘By tomorrow, we’ll know what our numbers are, and how many officers have opted to forego the vaccine,’ the officer disclosed on the day of the deadline.
‘The Seattle Police Officers Guild is still in negotiations with the city over accommodations for those opposed to the vaccine.’
Officers used yellow Gadsden flags – a symbol of American patriotism originating from the Revolutionary War – that depict a snake ready to strike, to express their displeasure with the mandate being forced upon them.
In New York City, Mayor Bill De Blasio announced Wednesday that the city would be the latest metropolis to force municipal workers to choose between getting vaccinated and the alternative.
NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio announced Wednesday that the city would be the latest metropolis to force municipal workers – including NYPD – to choose between getting vaccinated and losing their jobs
‘We’ve given people a lot of time. It’s time to keep moving,’ the mayor said of the controversial decree during a Wednesday press conference.
‘We are here to keep you safe so you can keep everyone else safe. We need you to keep everyone around you in the workplace safe, we need to make sure the people you encounter are safe.’
What’s more, in an attempt to encourage public employees, including the NYPD, to get the jab – one that directly contradicts and mirrors DeSantis’ planned incentive – any city worker who gets their first shot between now and October 29 will receive a $500 bonus in their paycheck.
However, on Monday, just a week from the proposed deadline, the city’s largest police union, the New York City Police Benevolent Association, threw a wrench into the lame-duck mayor’s plans and filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the mandate.
The results of the suit will effect more than 36,000 officers and more than 100,000 other workers employed by the city.
If it fails, unvaccinated employees would be required to be put on unpaid leave if unable to produce proof of vaccination to their direct supervisor, de Blasio said.
There would not be a weekly COVID testing option, he added.
DeSantis last week announced that he also has plans to call a special legislative session intended to create support for state residents – not city – against nationwide COVID-19 policies.
‘We’re going to have a special session and we’re going to say nobody should lose their job based off these injections,’ he said.
‘It’s a choice you can make but we want to make sure we are protecting your jobs and your livelihood.’
COVID cases are currently on the decline, with 77,933 new cases reported on Friday, and 1,277 new deaths.
Across the United States, 66.4 percent of eligible Americans have received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine and 57.4 percent are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which still warns that community transmission remains high.