John Furner
Walmart Inc. of Bentonville said Tuesday that it will begin screening employees for signs of illness before they begin their shifts.
In a blog post on the retailer’s corporate website, John Furner, president and CEO of the company’s U.S. stores, and Kath McLay, president and CEO of Sam’s Club, laid out additional steps the company would take in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19.
Walmart has already reduced store hours, stepped up cleaning efforts, made many services “contact free” and instituted an emergency employee leave plan to deal with the global outbreak. In recent days, it’s begun installing sneeze guards at checkout stations and pharmacies.
“As the COVID-19 situation has evolved, we’ve decided to begin taking the temperatures of our associates as they report to work in stores, clubs and facilities, as well as asking them some basic health screening questions,” Furner and McLay wrote. “We are in the process of sending infrared thermometers to all locations, which could take up to three weeks.
“Any associate with a temperature of 100.0 degrees will be paid for reporting to work and asked to return home and seek medical treatment if necessary. The associate will not be able to return to work until they are fever-free for at least three days.”
Walmart also said that it would make gloves and masks available for any employees who wish to use them, even though it said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do not recommend them for healthy people who don’t ordinarily use them for their jobs.
“The masks will arrive in 1-2 weeks,” the executives wrote. “They will be high-quality masks, but not N95 respirators — which should be reserved for at-risk healthcare workers.
“We encourage anyone who would like to wear a mask or gloves at work to ask their supervisor for them, while keeping in mind that it is still possible to spread germs while wearing them.”
The moves come as Walmart and other retailers see a surge in demand from online and in-person shoppers at brick-and-mortar stores seeking groceries and other key supplies. Walmart announced last week that it would fast-track the hiring of 150,000 employees nationwide, including 3,000 in Arkansas.
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