SHOP TELLS MASK EXEMPT MAN TO LEAVE
A MAN exempt from wearing a facemask says he was left “gobsmacked” when he was asked to leave a Burton animal charity shop.
Dave Yeomans was hoping to do a spot of shopping at the RSPCA Hillfield Animal Home, in High Street, in the town centre when he was told by staff he had to leave the shop as he was not wearing a face covering.
The 59-year-old is exempt from having to wear a mask due to having asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which causes breathing difficulties. He wears a “hidden disabilities” lanyard to make shops aware that he cannot wear a mask.
However, the policy at the Burton charity store is that everyone who goes inside has to wear face masks to protect the staff who work there, they have said.
Mr Yeomans, of Stapenhill, said: “I just had to leave the shop even though I’m exempt from wearing a face mask. “I think it’s disgusting.
“I thought of all places that a charity shop would be more understanding and I was wearing the lanyard to say I can’t wear a face mask.
“I can’t get kicked out of a shop if I had a lanyard. I was very put out by it.
“My daughter went back in the shop after to have a word with them.
“I was there to spend some money to support the charity shop.
“How many more people are going to go in there and get kicked out for not wearing a mask?
“I thought it was a bit extreme from a charity of all places – I was gobsmacked.
“As soon as masks became mandatory I rang my doctor up and they don’t issue anything, so I was told to get a lanyard.
“I was just gobsmacked by it all.”
A spokeswoman for the Burton branch of the RSPCA said the government guidelines on masks were clearly displayed at the front of the store and everyone who entered needed to wear a mask, including the staff working there who all wear visors.
She said: “We’ve put the government guidelines outside the shop and we have to adhere to them to protect our staff.
“This is not to initiate problems or stop people coming in as we want customers to come in; to continue to keep it going.
“If we closed, Hillfield would lose one of its main streams of income and it would have a negative impact. “This is important to keep our staff safe and we ask the public to wear masks.
“We understand this is difficult for some people.
“We cannot please all the people all of the time but we do our best for the benefit of the animals.
“It’s a very difficult situation and our staff are on the frontline.
“The welfare of our staff is of paramount importance.
“If the staff get sick then the income stream to support the animals is null and void and that is my main reason for doing this.
“It’s a difficult job.
“My main concern is keeping my staff safe and abiding by the legislation the Government has put forward.
“It’s important that we do this.”
An RSPCA spokesman said: “The RSPCA Burton branch, which is a separately registered charity from the national RSPCA, is aware of this complaint and will be looking into it. “The RSPCA recognises that there are age, health or disability reasons for not wearing a face covering and reminds staff to make sure they act sensitively to this.”