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Survey: Arizona grocery workers anxious about unmasked shoppers

Virus Outbreak Grocery Workers
Posted at 2:08 PM, Feb 27, 2021
and last updated 2021-02-28 22:48:49-05

PHOENIX — Many grocery store workers in Arizona say they’re still anxious about customers who won’t wear masks.

One in five employees affiliated with a major grocery union say they are worried they could be physically assaulted by a shopper as the coronavirus pandemic grinds into its second year.

Preliminary results of a University of Arizona online survey showed members of a union representing about half the state’s grocery workers said customers were a bit better about wearing masks, but complaining more.

Nearly 4,000 union members responded in July and then gave updated responses this month.

In February, about 19% of the workers said they feared being physically assaulted by a customer, down slightly from 22% last July.