Walmart to demand workers wear face masks in high-risk county stores



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People wearing face masks shop at a Walmart store on May 18, 2021 in Hallandale Beach, Florida.

Joe Raedle | Getty Images

Walmart said on Friday it would start requiring masks for store workers in high-risk counties in the United States, as determined by the latest CDC rankings, regardless of vaccine status and with immediate effect.

Buyers are strongly encouraged to wear masks in stores, but they will not be required to do so, the retailer said in a note to staff.

Walmart said it will add signage near the entrances to its stores and warehouse clubs to remind customers of the revised CDC guidelines. The company will be reviewing the store’s mask rules every week from here on out.

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a new recommendation that calls for re-wearing face masks in areas of the country where the Covid-19 virus is spreading fastest. This covers about two-thirds of all counties in the United States.

The decision came about two months after the CDC said in May that those vaccinated could do without masks. That’s when Walmart also stopped requiring masks for vaccinated workers and customers. The delta variant, however, did escalate cases and led the agency to reassess.

Walmart also said it was doubling the incentive for staff to be vaccinated against Covid, to $ 150. Employees who have already received the $ 75 incentive will receive an additional $ 75 on their August 19 paycheque, the company said Friday.

Walmart will soon be implementing a new vaccine status verification process for U.S. employees. He plans to share more details about this process in the future.

The big-box retailer’s policy change comes just a day after Apple began requiring vaccinated and unvaccinated customers, as well as staff members, to wear masks in many of its stores across the United States. United.

Other retail outlets, including Macy’s, Gap and Kroger, told CNBC they are reviewing the new CDC guidelines and may release updated rules in the coming days.

The overthrow of the CDC has once again put retailers in a difficult position. For consumers, the county-by-county rules can be confusing, especially for those who are already vaccinated and feel like they don’t need to put on a mask. And last year, when large retail chains first launched mask warrants, store workers were often the ones who put an end to monitoring bad behavior in stores.

The CDC has now warned House lawmakers that the delta variant is as contagious as chickenpox, has a longer window of transmission than the original Covid-19 strain, and can make older people sicker, even though they have been fully vaccinated.

“We know that vaccinations are our key to driving change,” Walmart said in the memo sent to all US employees. “We urge you to get vaccinated and hope that many more of you get vaccinated. “

The company further stressed that business travel should be limited to “business critical” travel for the time being.

Walmart is the largest retailer in the United States, with approximately 4,700 stores in the United States, and the largest private employer, with approximately 1.6 million American workers.

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