Wisconsin businesses have mixed reactions to CDC mask recommendations.

The sudden relaxing of mask rules for fully vaccinated Americans on Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention left businesses studying their options on how to react.

Among them was the Milwaukeebased Roundy’s division of the Kroger Co.

The company operates Pick ‘n Save and Metro Market stores in nearly every population center in Wisconsin including Milwaukee, Green Bay, Appleton, Oshkosh, Wausau, Sheboygan, Fond du Lac, Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids, Manitowoc, Sturgeon Bay, Marshfield and Madison.

More than 1 million people visit the company’s 106 stores in Wisconsin every week.

“At this time, Kroger ... continues to require everyone in our stores to wear masks,” according to an email from James Hyland, a company spokesman. “As we have throughout the pandemic, we are reviewing current safety practices, the CDC’s latest guidance, and soliciting feedback from associates to guide the next phase of our policy.”

Kroger is one of the world’s largest retailers.

Deborah Morgan, manager for HR content for MRA, a Waukesha-based human resources nonprofit that focuses on employee-employer relations, said that when deciding how to react to the changes, businesses should be mindful that some employees haven’t been vaccinated for reasons that could range from religious to having an underlying medical condition that prevents them from getting vaccinated.

“They need to be careful with the message and how they relay it,” Morgan said.

Morgan said businesses should contemplate how they are going to ask employees about their vaccination status to avoid alienating some workers.

Steve Bass, senior vice president of government affairs and public policy for the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, said if a business does ask employees about their vaccination status, it could put the business “on treacherous ground.”

“I don’t think many employers are going to be recommending documented proof of vaccination,” Bass said. “I think they’re more likely to give the guidance to their employees and let their employees react however they want within the guidance.”

“Smart businesses are having discussions with their employees and trying to reach consensus around comfort level and procedures that work for them individually,” Bass added.

Kate Parmeter, who owns Sweet Tea Clothing Co. in Wisconsin Rapids and Plover, said since the state dropped its mask mandate, she’s had a mix of people coming in to shop — some wear masks, and others don’t. She hasn’t required masks at the stores, but if someone comes in wearing a mask, she and her staff will put theirs on to make the shoppers feel more comfortable.

The new recommendations from the CDC won’t change what they’ve been doing at the stores, she said.

RICK WOOD / MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL Workers at Prestige Dry Cleaners were wearing masks in this photo from last summer as the COVID-19 pandemic was raging. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday relaxed some of the recommendations for fully vaccinated Americans to wear masks.