The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned workers in shops and restaurants not to argue with anti-mask customers in the wake of several heated confrontations.
“Don’t argue with a customer if they make threats or become violent,” the CDC says in a new advisory about “workplace violence” related to COVID-19.
“Threats and assaults can happen in any workplace, but may be more likely to occur in retail, services (e.g., restaurants), and other customer- or client-based businesses,” the guidelines, which were posted online Monday, state.
While the CDC recommends that businesses require customers to wear face coverings and practice social distancing, the agency also cautioned that employees may be assaulted for enforcing such policies.
That may include customers “slapping, kicking, pushing, choking” workers, or verbal attacks such as “name-calling” and “swearing,” the advisory states.
To help prevent workplace violence, the CDC highlighted steps — ranging from verbal conflict resolution to installing panic buttons — that service industry bosses can take to protect their workers.
Other recommendations included setting up a designated safe area where employees can go if they feel they are in danger.
The warning comes after several clashes between workers and customers gained national attention in recent weeks, including a teen hostess who was bloodied in an alleged attack for enforcing social distancing at a Chili’s restaurant in Louisiana.
Other recent heated mask-related incidents include a shopper who was caught on camera flipping out in a Florida Costco and a Philadelphia bar owner who allegedly pulled a gun on a man after a social distancing dispute.
