The NYPD will discipline unvaccinated cops who don’t mask up while on the job — regardless if they are indoors or outdoors — as city officials try to prevent a surge of serious coronavirus cases in response to the highly infectious Delta variant, The Post has learned.
The department’s new guidance for masking was shared with the entire police force Tuesday evening in an administrative bulletin that spelled out instructions for officers to provide proof of the vaccination with the NYPD’s Medical Division, according to a copy of the bulletin obtained by The Post.
The move comes as the department has struggled to convince its workforce to get the jab, with only 43% of its uniformed and civilian employees vaccinated as of last month.
“Members who do not have official proof of COVID-19 vaccination on file with the Medical Division must wear a face covering at all times while working, whether indoors or outside, including while driving in Department vehicles,” according to the bulletin.
“These members may temporarily remove their masks when engaging in reasonable activities such as consuming food, drinking beverages, adjusting the face coverings due to temperature or to correct a breathing condition.”
“Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken for unvaccinated members found not wearing a face covering when required,” the memo reads.
One police source praised the change, saying it was a good thing “for the sake of humanity.”
The bulletin says sergeants or directors and above will be tasked with enforcing the policy for officers who haven’t gotten the jab and adds additional instructions will be provided to those supervisors.
Cops who are vaccinated must also mask up if they are in elevators, in schools, on public transit, in homeless shelters, jails, nursing homes or hospitals.
The memo does not say what the discipline would be for flouting the rules, or if vaccinated cops would be disciplined for not wearing a mask.
NYPD officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The department was often criticized during the pandemic with many on the force spotted openly flouting masking guidelines to help prevent the spread of the virus.
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced last month the city’s vaccination-or-test mandate would cover the entire municipal workforce. City employees, outside the NYPD, who violate the mandate will be “suspended without pay until they come into compliance,” a spokesman for the mayor said.Â
Cops may apply for “reasonable accommodation allowing them not to wear a face covering” through the EEOD Reasonable Accommodation Unit, the bulletin says.
It does not say how the weekly testing would work for cops.
Another police source told The Post they expect the weekly testing process to be a mess, with cops purposely burning as much time as they could on the clock to get a swab.
Additional reporting by Julia Marsh
