KERRVILLE, Texas – When Texas Governor Greg Abbott said he would lift the statewide Covid-19 mask mandate, he left the companies responsible for setting and enforcing their own policies. HEB, a beloved Texas grocer and staunch man during past crises in the state, waffled.
The company, which had experienced a string of disagreements in its aisles over mask policies, initially said it would urge customers to wear masks but require employees. A few days later, after some shoppers and workers criticized the grocer, the chain clarified its position. It would leave signs and continue to make announcements stating that masks are required, offering them to maskless shoppers. HEB also said it would continue its policy not to escalate situations where a customer refuses to wear a mask.
The shift in HE-B’s message reflects the balancing act many Texas businesses are now facing after the state put them in charge of establishing and enforcing the mask policy. Since the mandate was lifted on March 10, some HEB employees and customers say they’ve noticed more maskless shoppers shopping down the aisles.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS
Who should determine public safety policy during a pandemic, companies or legislators? Why? Join the conversation below.
After the chain’s initial statement that it would urge customers to wear masks, HEB president Scott McClelland told the Houston Chronicle that the governor’s move has stripped stores of the ‘backstop’ that posed the threat of a fine, which he said could lead to more people entering shops without masks. Mr. McClelland said he had to weigh the physical well-being of customers and employees given the frequent disputes over masks in stores, even when state mask rules were in place.
“Of all the issues we’ve addressed in the past year, masks are the most polarizing,” Mr. McClelland told The Chronicle. “Partly because they were used as a political weapon and partly because people, frankly, don’t like to wear masks.”
HEB said it expects shoppers to continue wearing masks in its stores and has increased safety in many of its locations. “The ending of mask regulations is really putting pressure on retailers to enforce emotional policies for many and we will not ask our partners to put themselves at risk,” the company said in a written statement.
Gov. Greg Abbott, here in February, rescinded the mask mandate on March 10.
Photo:
Bob Daemmrich / Zuma Press
Several HEB employees said they have noticed an increase in the number of people not wearing masks since Mr. Abbott. An HEB employee in the Bryan-College Station area of eastern Texas said he might notice an unmasked customer every hour during tenure. Last week, as an experiment, he began to count people who did not wear masks during one of his shifts. In about five hours, he saw 38 people without masks.
The employee said he wished HEB would take a stronger stance in favor of masks, although he said he understood it would be difficult to implement. “They don’t want chaos and fight in their stores,” he said. “I don’t think it’s an easy choice anyway … but it’s the right choice.”
At an HEB in Kerrville, a small town in Hill Country in central Texas, the employees didn’t seem to bother the few unmasked customers who showed up Friday morning last week.
“I don’t like people telling me what to do,” said one male customer. “Let me make that decision.”
Some of the largest retail, theater, hotel, and restaurant chains said they planned to continue to demand masks in Texas, Mississippi, and other states that have lifted the restrictions.
Many local entrepreneurs welcomed the policy change, especially in hard-hit industries such as restaurants desperate to get customers back. In a March survey of more than 700 restaurants conducted by the Texas Restaurant Association, 44% of respondents said they would no longer need face coverings from their customers.
Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top infectious disease physician, says curbing public health measures is risky as coronavirus cases can flatten and then recover.
Founded by the Butt family in 1905, HEB has more than 400 stores in the state. The chain was praised for its pandemic preparation when Covid-19 first struck, has been a major competitor in vaccine rollout, and is regularly praised for its response to hurricanes and other disasters.
Katy Bravenec, 37, said she lost faith in HEB after the initial statement and no longer plans to shop at her San Antonio store. Ms. Bravenec said she scouted three HE-Bs after the mask mandate was lifted to see if customers could shop maskless. After seeing a handful of customers not wearing masks at each store, she said she would take her business to a nearby Trader Joe’s.
“It didn’t fit their public image,” she said. “You can’t claim to be a strong community partner and then override the mask mandate if it’s not just there for your employees, but also for our community. It just seemed hypocritical. “
Wendy Wright shops at an HEB in Houston, but said she would consider switching to nearby Kroger Co.
KR -1.51%
shop when she notices an increase in maskless shoppers. Ms. Wright said she has been to HEB twice since the Republican governor rescinded the mask mandate. On the maiden trip, she estimated that about 10% of shoppers did not have a mask. She gave the store another chance last Sunday and didn’t notice any customers or employees without a mask.
‘I’ll take it week after week and if it seems like a safe place to shop, I’ll stay. If they slide masks, I’ll go to another store, ”she said. “I’m 60, I don’t want to play with Covid.”
“The more we talked about it, it didn’t seem right to enforce it because it’s not a law.”
Other companies in Texas have struggled whether and how to respond to the lifting of restrictions.
In Pearland, the Good Vibes Burgers & Brews restaurant told local media when the mandate was lifted that it will scrap all mask requirements. A day later, on March 11, the company said that all employees would wear masks and that it would hand out disposable masks to any customer who wanted one. A company spokeswoman declined to comment.
Augie Bering V, owner of Bering’s hardware stores in Houston, said it was a relief when Texas instituted a mask mandate in the summer. Since then, he said, few unmasked people have visited the stores. The lifting of the mask order put entrepreneurs in a difficult position, he said.
“We’ve been put in the middle,” he said. “Some of the conversations we had were, ‘We need it so we can enforce it.’ But the more we talked about it, it didn’t seem right to enforce it because it’s not a law. People might see it as something political. ”
Almost everyone at the Kerrville HEB was masked last Friday morning, two days after the mandate was withdrawn. The choices are largely regional, says Rachel Townsend, 24, who works in the mental health field. She notices that many more people wear masks in Kerrville, where many retirees live, than in her hometown of Uvalde in southern Texas, she said.
In Fort Worth, Tatiana Miller, 39, said she sympathizes with Texas companies involved in the mask debate. Ms. Miller said companies have no way of enforcing a mask policy, with or without a mandate. She said she agreed with the policy of urging customers to wear a face cover, but not making it mandatory for entry.
“Texans love their choice. It would be easier for people to decide what to do or not to do, ”she said. “I feel that companies cannot win.”
Write to Patrick Thomas at [email protected] and Elizabeth Findell at [email protected]
Copyright © 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8