While nearly 80% of the folks in our poll want New Hampshire opened now, that’s not how we’re doing things. But the governor’s plan will allow retailers to reopen Monday, May 11th, with some stipulations.
Related: See Our Poll Results: How Soon Should We Open New Hampshire?
You can view all the plans from the planning planners here because there are lots of plans in ‘Stay-at-Home 2.0.’ One of them is for retailers, and it goes into effect in just two days, unless you are a rebel and opened and said the hell with it. That’s our guidance. But for the rest of you, there are rules.
There are three sections. Employee Protection, Customer Protection, and Business Process Adaptations with 28 numbered points total. Here are a few of each.
Employee Protection:
1. All staff must wear cloth face coverings at all times when in the retail facility and
in public locations or shared staff areas (e.g. break rooms), even if other
individuals are not immediately present.
2. Provide training on cloth face coverings based on CDC guidance for Use of Cloth
Face Coverings.
3. People wearing face coverings must not touch their eyes, nose, mouth, or face, or
adjust their facemask without first sanitizing hands. After touching face or
adjusting mask, hands must be sanitized.
4. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer must be made readily available for both staff and
consumers at entrances and exits to the retail facility, at checkout locations, and
in staff breakrooms and other commonly used staff areas.
5. Stagger shifts, breaks, and meals, in compliance with wage and hour laws and
regulations to maintain social distancing.
…
Customer Protection
1. Develop a process for limiting the number of customers inside a store at a given
time, excluding employees and representatives of third-party delivery companies, to
50 percent or less of store occupancy based on New Hampshire’s Building and Fire
Code.
2. Ensure any waiting line outside the store has demarcations spacing customers at
least 6 feet apart.
3. Customers should wear cloth face coverings at all times when inside the store.
Signage and staff should request this before customers enter the store.
4. Consider dedicated shopping hours or appointment times for the elderly and
medically vulnerable persons.
5. If feasible and reasonable, establish one-way aisles and traffic patterns for social
distancing.
…
Business Process Adaptations
1. Services should preferably be paid for electronically, but retailers may accept cash
or check.
2. Establish enhanced cleaning protocols that follow CDC guidance relating to cleaning
and disinfection for COVID-19. This includes cleaning and disinfecting shared
resources and frequently touched surfaces every two hours. Check-out lanes should
be wiped down and cleaned between each customer.
3. When possible, use a clearly designated entrance and a separate clearly designated
exit to maintain social distancing.
4. Use plastic shields or barriers between customers and clerks at service counters and
clean them frequently.
5. Adjust store hours to allow time for enhanced cleaning.
6. Continue to prohibit the use of reusable bags.
…
There is no real enforcement mechanism, and this is nothing more than guidance. But you can and should expect the neighborhood Stasi – more often than not activist Democrats – to make a stink if you are not following the letter of the guidelines.
You’ll certainly get your fair share of worry-warts. A lot of people (including business owners) drank the COVID Koolaid® and are in a near-constant state of fear.
Our position is that what you choose to do is up to you, and your employees and customers are free to make their own decisions about where to work or spend their money just as if we’d never hear of the tyranny that is the political response to SARS Cov2.
#ReopenNH
