SALT LAKE CITY — Associated Retail Operations announced Monday it will require employees at its grocery stores in Utah to wear face coverings to help protect its team as well as customers.
Macey’s, Dan’s, Lin’s, Dick’s Market and Fresh Market stores will provide cloth masks, face shields, and bandanas to their teams. All team members will wear face coverings to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
The policy went into effect Monday, April 20, according to a news release.
“We are doing everything possible to protect our team and our guests, and recently we were able to acquire masks for our associates” said Darin Peirce, Vice President of Associated Retail Operations (ARO). “Therefore, we are requiring our team to wear a provided face covering in the form of a cloth mask, face shield or bandana. Similarly, we have also required all our local vendors and suppliers to wear masks both while working in backrooms and while on the sales floor.”
“In addition to requiring our team to wear face coverings, we strongly encourage our shoppers to please wear their own masks or similar face coverings while in our stores and other public locations,” said Peirce.
In addition to the new face covering policy, Associated Retail Operations has also taken the following precautions to help mitigate the spread of Coronavirus:
· Employee temperature checks occur as they arrive at work.
· Vendors also wear face coverings when entering ARO stores.
· A COVID-19 emergency leave policy was introduced to assist team members if they get sick or need to care for a family member who gets sick during the pandemic.
· Hand sanitizer is provided for team members for frequent use.
· Carts, pin pads, and grocery belts are sanitized after each use.
· All sanitizing procedures have been reinforced and cleaning has increased in frequency, including implementation of a rigorous hourly cleaning checklist.
· Special shopping hours for seniors, immunocompromised and other high-risk individuals currently occur each Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning.
· In-store signage communicates COVID-19 symptoms and encourages best practices.
· Safety shields, a plexiglass barrier at check stands, help encourage better social distancing.
· One-way aisles allow guests to shop without concern so others will not encroach on the recommended six feet of social distance.
· Social distancing floor graphics mark where guests should stand for proper social distancing.
· Protective gloves are available for team members working in front-end and service departments.
· Center for Disease Control’s materials are in all restrooms and breakrooms, providing education on proper social distancing and hand-washing practices.
“We care about our team and the community we serve. As a local company, we serve our family, neighbors and friends. We are a vital part of our community and we take that responsibility seriously. We are all in this pandemic fight together, and as your local grocer we are taking every measure possible to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” Peirce said.
