Across H-E-B, Partners are strongly encouraged to wear masks and gloves while at work
At H-E-B, our top priority is the health and safety of our Partners and customers. In our continued efforts to keep our Partners and Customers safe, H-E-B will provide Partners (employees) masks and gloves for use while at work.
As an essential business to the public during this time, all H-E-B Partners who work in our stores, warehouses, manufacturing and transportation facilities will be strongly encouraged to wear masks, which H-E-B will provide starting Saturday, April 4. Gloves, which have been available to Partners, are also provided for use. This effort also applies to Central Market, Joe V’s Smart Shop and Mi Tienda locations.
While we understand the use of masks does not fully prevent the transmission of coronavirus, we are taking every precaution to ensure our Partners feel comfortable while serving our customers.
“As an essential service provider at this time, masks and gloves are just another safeguard we’ve implemented across our company to protect the health and safety of our Partners, customers and communities,” said Martin Otto, H-E-B chief operating officer. “We are here for all Texans and we take our role to protect public safety seriously.”
All Partners who choose these options must continue to follow H-E-B’s strict hygiene and sanitation measures as well as proper social distancing protocols. Partners who wear masks must keep them clean and maintain our high standards for hygiene and sanitation while at work. Partners who wear gloves must continue to frequently wash their hands and apply hand sanitizer. Gloves must also be regularly changed and properly discarded after use.
With demand high, we will provide our Partners with masks as long as we can maintain supply and continue to look for solutions for our customers as well.
Throughout this crisis, H-E-B has implemented a number of significant measures and has worked hard to educate our Partners and customers about the virus. We created a dedicated leader in every store, the COVID Action Manager, who is trained to ensure sanitation and social distancing procedures are properly followed. We have also installed plexiglass partitions at all checkstands, metered entry into stores, adopted crowd control guidelines to manage customer traffic, and placed floor decals to help identify proper social distance. Additionally, we conduct deep cleaning and sanitizing of stores and hard surfaces as well as fuel stations throughout the day, and utilize contactless home delivery to limit direct interaction. We require our Partners to stay home if they feel ill.
As we continue to monitor the spread of the pandemic, we are following guidance and advice from medical professionals and the CDC to make the best decisions regarding the health and safety of our Partners, customers and the communities we serve. For more about our COVID-19 efforts, visit H-E-B Newsroom at heb.com/newsroom.