Walmart will require customers to wear facemasks at its stores and Sam’s Club locations, effective on July 20.
The retailer has a distribution center in Smyrna, a Sam’s in Dover and stores in all three counties. Face coverings are already required for customers and employees in Delaware and adjacent states.
The Delaware Business Times listed Walmart as Delaware’s 10th largest employer with a staff of more than 4,500.
The company noted that 65 percent of its 5,000 stores and clubs are located in areas where there is some form of government mandate on face coverings.
Walmart noted that the CDC has determined that face coverings help decrease the spread of COVID-19.
Walmart has created the role of Health Ambassador and will station the individuals near the entrance to remind those without a mask of our new requirements and come up with solutions for those who do not have a face covering.
All Walmarts will have a single entrance, a requirement that has been in place in Delaware.
Associates will be trained to work with those who cannot wear a face mask for medical reasons.
“We know some people have differing opinions on this topic. We also recognize the role we can play to help protect the health and well-being of the communities we serve by following the evolving guidance of health officials like the CDC. We appreciate the understanding and cooperation of our customers and members in wearing face coverings to protect their safety and the safety of our associates,” Dacona Smith, chief operating officer, Walmart U.S., and Lance de la Rosa, chief operating officer, Sam’s Club stated in the announcement.
Walmart and other retailers have been dealing with angry customers, including some who have shown a card that claims the use of a mask violates their constitutional rights. In other cases, masked customers have berated those without coverings.
