Harris Teeter, Food Lion equipping workers with face masks

The company says they have been trying “for weeks” to source the masks, but their orders have not been fulfilled because of the low supply.

Food Lion says they have already equipped stores with face masks and shields.

Both companies say wearing the masks will be optional for employees, which is in line with the current guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Employees are also allowed to wear face coverings of their own.

Blair Walter, who lives and shops in Raleigh, believes the masks should be required.

“They are the go-between for everyone in this neighborhood,” Walter said of grocery employees. “I just feel like [masks] should be necessary for any essential business.”

Lidl, which has six stores in central North Carolina, says each employee is issued five pairs of gloves and one face mask per shift. Lidl is also offering paid leave for employees over the age of 65 and relaxing its attendance policy.

“They can stay home and they will be without penalty,” said William Harwood, a spokesperson for Lidl. “Once this is over, they will still have a job.”

At smaller grocers, like Raleigh Pharmacy and Market, employees are wearing gloves and increasing their cleaning to once an hour.

“Every day we sanitize the whole store, wipe the cooler handles, the credit card machines, the pen they use to sign everything [and] the countertops,” said Vanitha Yogendran, the store’s owner.

One of Yogendran’s employees, Valyri Bosserman, says there is only so much they can do to stay safe.

“I think my main concern is the fact that I’m still seeing lots of customers,” said Bosserman.

Harris Teeter and Food Lion have each announced plans to hire 5,000 additional employees to meet the increasing demand. Representatives of the stores said there has been no shortage of applicants for those positions.