VICTORIA -- Walmart customers should prepare to have a face mask handy as the retail giant will soon make them mandatory in all of its Canadian locations.
Starting Aug. 12, all Walmart customers and staff members will be required to wear a mask while inside the store.
The commercial giant had already mandated masks at all of its U.S. stores in April.
According to Walmart Canada spokesperson Felicia Fefer, more than 60 per cent of the retail chain's 400 Canadian stores already require face masks due to local government health orders.
"Customers have done a great job following face covering requirements in those jurisdictions where it is mandated by the local government," Fefer told CTV News.
"We trust that customers in the rest of our stores where we are initiating this policy will respect and follow it and will bring their own face coverings when they shop," she said.
In addition to face masks, Walmart says it will continue to use other COVID-19 safety measures it’s developed during the pandemic. This includes increased cleaning of stores and shopping carts, limiting the number of people inside establishments, using Plexiglass barriers at registers, using floor markers to direct shoppers through one-way aisles and performing temperature checks on all employees before the beginning of shifts.
"Safety continues to be Walmart’s number one priority and we will continue to take measures necessary to ensure the well-being of our customers and associates," said Walmart Canada.
