The city of Los Angeles may eliminate as many as 2,000 vacant positions, which would shrink the number of city employees by about 5%, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times.
Thanks to a “steadily worsening financial picture,” Mayor Karen Bass and the City Council may remove these open positions, City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo said in a report on Monday.
“Although a list of targeted jobs is still being prepared, it could include unfilled positions at the police and fire departments, the Bureau of Sanitation and agencies responsible for parks, recreation programs and transportation, among others,” the Times reports.
In a statement to the Times, Bass’ spokesperson Zach Seidl said “some of these positions have been sitting vacant for multiple years,” though he added that police officers, firefighters, garbage truck operators and sanitation workers wouldn’t be affected.
“This process will involve difficult decisions, but the city will continue to provide needed services for Angelenos,” he said, as reported by the Times.
Opponents, like Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez and SEIU Local 721 President and Executive Director David Green, suggested the cuts would reduce city services for residents.
“[Eliminating] up to 2,000 vacant positions within the city isn’t a feasible long-term solution when we’re just years away from the Olympics — a once-in-a-generation event poised to put enormous strain on front-line services across Los Angeles and beyond,” said Green.
Other options, which could be implemented alongside the job cuts, could include “hiking city fees, delaying public works projects and cutting back on consulting work,” Szabo said.