Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- In New York, thousands of police officers, firefighters and other city workers were sent on unpaid leave due to refusal to get vaccinated against coronavirus. This was reported by Fox News.

According to the City Hall of New York, to date, 22.8 thousand municipal employees of the city have not been vaccinated against coronavirus. “Today 9 thousand people were sent on leave without pay. The rest are at various stages of consideration. While they can be at work,"- said the press secretary of the Mayor of New York Mitch Schwartz.

In particular, about 2 thousand firefighters were sent on unpaid leave. New York State Representative Nicole Malliotakis said 26 fire stations in the city were closed due to the mayor’s decision to suspend unvaccinated employees. “A shortage of potentially thousands of firefighters will result in longer response times and the risk of injury and death,” she said.

Earlier, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order, according to which all municipal employees are obliged to get vaccinated against COVID-19 by 29 October. If refused, employees must go on unpaid leave. The order has sparked discontent among unvaccinated employees, who have staged several massive protests last week.