Masks are currently compulsory in all indoor areas in Austria. The nationwide ordinance on this expires on Holy Saturday. The government is currently negotiating whether it will be extended again. Representatives for the trade called for the end of the mask requirement on Wednesday – especially for employees in the food trade.
According to trade chairman Rainer Trefelik, the epidemiological perspective clearly speaks for the end of the mask requirement in retail. The abolition of the mask requirement should also apply to staff in the food trade in order to avoid unequal treatment. Christian Prauchner, chairman of the food trade, argued in a similar way: Since the number of new infections is now falling sharply and the risk of infection when shopping for food is extremely low, it is no longer reasonable for employees in the food trade to continue to be required to wear masks. In the future, one should rely more on “personal responsibility”.
Video: New regulation is expected:
The trade association also called for the end of the mask requirement in the entire trade on Wednesday afternoon and that by Easter at the latest. Almost all European countries have already lifted the mask requirement in shops, according to Rainer Will, Managing Director of the Trade Association. Austrian trade would like politicians to have uniform rules for the whole country after Easter. A legal patchwork rug would only confuse consumers.
In addition, the starting shot for the preparations is needed now in order to get through the autumn and winter as crisis-resistant as possible. “Under no circumstances should waiting be repeated in the summer of 2020 and in the summer of 2021, since any negative development of the health crisis would further exacerbate the effects of the real economic crisis in Ukraine. Planning and transparency provide security and confidence for everyone,” said Will. The trade association is therefore now calling for a corona crisis plan to be drawn up for the fall.
Source: Nachrichten
