San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer issued an executive order Monday declaring city employees as emergency workers, which allows the city more flexibility in how it deploys staff in the fight against the coronavirus.
Under the order, city employees, of which there are more than 11,000, can be assigned to perform duties outside of their regular job description, like protecting life and property.
Examples the mayor offered included city librarians who have been asked to deliver food and medical supplies to hospitals, and code enforcement officers helping parks and recreation staff educate the public.
Other city employees have already been deployed to enforce social distancing guidelines at beaches, parks and trails, Faulconer said.
Faulconer called the order a "very proactive step that will help give the
city of San Diego the flexibility and the capability to handle whatever may
come our way especially as we prepare for a surge of cases and activity in the
future.''
"With this designation, any disaster service worker, regardless of their formal
classification or assignment as a city employee, can assist the efforts to
protect life and property, support the city's emergency operations center, and
mitigate the effects of the emergency," he added.
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The mayor also announced a second SDPD officer has tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the city's total public safety officer count to seven.
The city of San Diego paused its police academy, postponed two firefighter academies, and postponed an advanced lifeguard academy, the mayor announced.
