supermarket face masks

[millythemalard]

Sorry if this has already been done- I have looked on line for the answer but I just don't understand. I am wearing a face mask in the shops- totally up for it if. If that's what we have to do then fine. But why don't people who work in supermarkets have to wear them?

They are in my local Tesco.

They are in my Tesco too.

Part of it is trying to protect the staf from the hoards of people in store, they don't want the second wave to knock out retail.

Remember, your mask protects them, not you.

It would be really hard to do an 8 hour shift in retail, especially moving stock, masked up.

As a customer, you're only masked up for 20 minutes or so.

Do you mean you what to know the reasoning behind the government's rules?

Because we work up to 14 hour shifts, often doing hard physical labour. Masks protect other people, not the wearer. They're protecting their staff

I think Matt Hancock's explanation was that they only help when worn for short periods, therefore no point for shop staff, in schools or in offices. I'm not entirely convinced....

I think the whole masks in shops thing was supposed to make more people more confident to go back, increasing sales and it's actually having the opposite effect. I suspect it will be abandoned very soon.

I get its shit wearing them for long shifts. I work in the NHS- have been wearing them for months. You get used to it.

I know they don't protect you - they protect others. So with that in mind a person a symptomatic shedding the virus while stacking a shelf if a risk to a lot of people- more so than me buying a pint of milk.

They would be wearing the stupid mask for hours on end almost daily. That is very different to customers who only have to wear them usually for a few minutes at a time. I would say that that is why masks are not mandatory for retail workers.

I wear mine when I go to do my supermarket shopping and I bloody well hate it.

Many of us can tolerate the masks for s fairly short time. Some people cannot wear them at all. I am in the former category as, I suspect, are very many people.

Because the Government aren't wanting to interfere with employment issues and potentially create a dispute. For example if train drivers had been forced and ASLEF had started a dispute it would have created a bit of a mess.

Remember this was implemented on bus/trains first The rules then we're transferred to shops in the same way.

I wear a plastic visor rather than a mask, partly because I work for 5 hours without a break, which is far longer than a customer stays in a shop, but I think mostly because a lot of customers need to see my face for lipreading.

Also, it's really hard to keep a mask on when talking for a long time, and customers expect shop staff to talk to them. We'd have to readjust masks and sanitise our hands every few customers, so service would be a lot slower.

Seems it's up to the store. My son works at a clothing shop and wears one when there are customers. But the shop we visited this weekend required us to and use hand sanitizer, but the staff did not wear any.

Yeah its hard wearing a mask all the time. I. KNOW.

so other than its hard wearing a mask all the time why?? Refusing entry to people to shops, people getting greif for not doing it (when they might have their own totally valid reasons) but the staff walking around not wearing them? I just can't see the logic?

@millythemalard

Sorry if this has already been done- I have looked on line for the answer but I just don't understand. I am wearing a face mask in the shops- totally up for it if. If that's what we have to do then fine. But why don't people who work in supermarkets have to wear them?

They are in my local Sainsburys

Its utter crap that retail workers shouldnt be wearing masks. I work 7.5 hours a day, 5 days in retail. We are required to wear a mask or visor whenever we are on the shopfloor, unless we are behind the till as then we are behind a screen.
My local Asda on Saturday had 3 staff wearing masks, quite frankly i think thats appaling, if staff are mixing with customers...or each other....and lets face it social distancing is long forgotten...then face coverings should be worn.

our shelves are full of big, heavy bulky items.....and its a warehouse store. massive place. we have no air con so its akin to a large greenhouse

so working big pallets of stock in that heat....no,we do not expect our colleagues to be wearing masks whilst doing heavy manual tasks, often using special equipment and the tall ladders.. many are glasses wearers too....accident waiting to happen with steamed up glasses, and manual handling

so we don't ask for face coverings. its a struggle keeping shelves full, we are double the footfall from what we had before covid and the customers are abusive enough (of course its our fault there is no sage green fence paint left)

The Government said people working in shops already have other Covid arrangements in place. I agree with that where staff are behind perspex screens but have found that staff on the shop floor in Tesco/B&M/Lidl/Home Bargains - to name a few stotes I've been in - totally do not social distance from customers or their colleagues and really ought to be wearing a mask.

Morrisons and Tesco staff did but Asda didn't tbh along as me and my family wear it im not bothered.

our experience is that customers get too close to US!!!

'excuse me have you got this?' (thrusts phone in your face with screenshot of some wallpaper) and they jump out when walking in designated arrow lane...think they have you cornered

come in.get your stuff, then go!

Staff were wearing visors or masks everywhere I went this weekend apart from the takeaway I went to.

Apart from those behind Perspex screens

So no actual evidence based reason then. Cool.

I have mostly seen staff wearing masks in supermarkets (Scotland)

This angers me too. It also drives me nuts that waiters etc are not wearing masks.

perspex screens are not much good....too small. i'm tall enough to peer over the top of ours

and they are breaking already