SEATTLE, United States (AP) — The Seattle mayor has banned the police use of tear gas as protests continue in the city and nationally over the killing of George Floyd.

Mayor Jenny Durkan said in a news conference Friday that the ban would continue for 30 days.

The move came hours after three civilian police watchdog groups urged city leaders to do so to build public trust and until the department adopts policies and training for the use of the chemical agent, The Seattle Times reported.

“After hearing concerns about the use of CS gas for crowd control purposes earlier this week…we decided we were going to suspend its use for 30 days,” Best said.

During the 30 days officials will review police crowd control policies, she said.

The Seattle area’s largest labour group also said this week it will expel the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) later this month unless the union admits that racism is a problem in law enforcement and agrees to address that problem in negotiating its next contract with the city.

The Martin Luther King Jr County Labor Council passed a resolution last Thursday as protests continued in Seattle and nationally over the killing of George Floyd. The resolution attributes policing problems to systemic racism. It called on the Seattle police union to acknowledge that or be thrown out of the umbrella group of more than 150 unions and 100,000 workers that wields tremendous power in greater Seattle politics.

The labour council’s resolution Thursday specifically mentioned contracts between police and the city. It said the police union must participate in an effort “dedicated to promoting safety within our community and within law enforcement by addressing racism within SPOG…and ensuring that contracts do not evade legitimate accountability”.