Customers of one of the world’s largest fast-food chains will soon have to wear masks as cases of the coronavirus surge in many places across the United States.
McDonald’s announced on Friday that it will require all diners to wear masks beginning next month. Additionally, the company said it would be adding divider panels and barriers and would put a pause on reopening dining rooms for another 30 days.
“The latest science suggests droplets have the potential to stay in the air for extended periods of time, increasing the risk of virus spread, especially from asymptomatic carriers,” McDonald’s said in a news release. “To that end, and in order to protect the safety of our employees and customers, we will ask all customers to wear face coverings when entering our US restaurants effective August 1.”
“While nearly 82% of our restaurants are in states or localities that require facial coverings for both crew and customers today, it’s important we protect the safety of all employees and customers,” the company added.
The fast-food chain said customers who refuse to wear face coverings or don’t have a mask will be dealt with “in a friendly, expedited way,” and additional procedures will be put in place to handle them.
“Additionally, we will provide training for our restaurant staff to ensure they are prepared to address this new policy in a friendly and positive way,” it added, noting that resources on de-escalation training will be shared again with employees.
The news comes as Chipotle’s face mask requirement went into effect.
Walmart and Sam’s Club also recently announced that masks will be mandatory in all of their more-than 5,000 stores across the country. Employees stationed at the entrance of the stores will be tasked with enforcing the order. Coffee giant Starbucks announced earlier this month that all of its stores will also be under a corporate mask mandate. Enforcement of the requirement began last week.
