Supermarkets look to scrap Covid screens
By Matt Hall | 1st September 2021
Retail bosses across the UK are reportedly in negotiations with contractors to remove plastic screens installed at tills, as normal shopping returns.
News website Retail Gazette said industry sources, major supermarkets and non-food businesses have begun discussions as to how and when they may be removed.
It is hoped the plastic screens will be recycled in bulk, in turn allowing businesses to recoup the costs associated with their purchase when the pandemic began.
These costs where suggested by some retailers, such as Iceland and Waitrose, as to why they should not pay back business rates relief despite the food sales boom.
Pret a Manger was the first company to remove the screens after Freedom Day in July, stating that it would "help speed up service and ensure we limit overcrowding". It also made face masks optional for both staff and customers.
The UK government continues to 'encourage' employers to use measures which reduce the spread of Covid.
A spokesperson from The British Retail Consortium said: "the screens will stay for the time being, certainly until the case numbers of the pandemic come right down".
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