Malls and stores in Israel have allegedly not been enforcing coronavirus restrictions, including requiring customers to wear masks, apply alcohol-based hand sanitizers and check for fever, according to an Israel Hayom report released early Monday.
Following the Health Ministry's decision to allow malls and stores to re-open in late May after remaining closed due to the coronavirus, businesses were required to implement a number of mandatory measures to prevent spread of the virus.
Reporters from Israel Hayom went first-hand to see if malls and stores in the country were adhering to the mandatory restrictions, finding that many store managers are treating the rules as recommendations.
They visited numerous businesses in Kfar Saba, in the Central District, to find that many stores were allowing customers into stores without mandatory checks, and that some stores only partially adhered to the requirements, such as not testing a customer's temperature. In some cases, there were no employees at the storefront to inspect customers.
In other cases, store managers did not place alcohol-based hand sanitizers at the entrance.
For restaurants, adherence to the rules were only partial as well, with the report noting that some customers ate inside food branches without an employee at the entrance checking customer temperatures, but nevertheless following the guidelines on hand sanitizer in the foyer and employees wearing masks.
Similarly, employees at some food chains also did not wear their masks properly.
At a Kfar Saba mall, in the cosmetics sections, which as an industry has been severely affected by coronavirus restrictions, the reporters found stricter adherence to the rules on temperature checks, hand sanitizer and masks, but lax attitudes among employees about covering both their mouths and noses with masks.