The coffee giant explained the face mask requirement is part of its work to prioritize 'the health and well-being' of both employees and customers.
- Seattle, WA
Seattle based Starbucks will require a face mask covering at all of their 9,000 United State's locations starting July 15th. The company explained in a blog post Thursday that it is working to prioritize "the health and well-being" of both employees and customers. The company said customers not wearing a face mask will be able to pick-up orders at the drive-thru, via curbside pick-up or by placing an order for delivery through Starbucks Delivers.
Employees have already been required to wear face coverings since mid-March.
"The company is committed to playing a constructive role in supporting health and government officials as they work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19," Starbucks said in a statement. Starbucks joins a growing list of companies requiring masks in their stores. Costco, the Apple Store, Dollar Tree, Verizon and AT&T already require customers to wear face coverings.
MLWA 7 news has gotten news tips that the local Moses Lake Dollar Store has been ignoring the state mask mandate and has not been acknowledging customers about the order and letting them shop mask free.
In areas where COVID-19 is spreading, health experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, say that wearing masks or other face coverings in public helps reduce the risk of spreading the virus when people can’t socially distance by staying 6 feet apart.
The coronavirus mainly spreads through droplets that are emitted when people talk, laugh, sing, cough and sneeze. Masks lower the likelihood of those droplets reaching other people. Even if you don’t have symptoms, you could be carrying the virus and could spread it.
KING 5 Seattle contributed to this report.
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