SHOP workers and shocked customers have spoken of their fears about a lack of protection for supermarket staff amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Readers have written in expressing concerns that supermarket workers, who come into contact with hundreds of shoppers every day, lack masks and gloves.

They also voiced fears that two-metre social distancing rules are not being enforced in some shops in Brighton, particularly supermarkets’ smaller stores.

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Stephen McMinn, from Hanover, works at a bike shop in Brighton. He said he has been equipped with protective gloves but worries that many supermarket staff are not so lucky.

He said: “I’m exposed to the public in my job and we didn’t have gloves for quite some time. As someone who works in retail, I’m worried about supermarket workers.

“It’s immediately obvious because when you go to certain shops, the two metre rule isn’t being enforced and many of the staff don’t have masks or gloves.

“They don’t seem protected at all.”

Most supermarkets have introduced more stringent measures since the Government introduced new rules last week.

All major supermarkets The Argus contacted insist they put the safety of their workers first.

In line with the Government guidance, they said they are limiting the number of people allowed in their stores and have put queuing controls in place to keep shoppers two metres apart.

Several supermarkets have now equipped workers with protective gear, and stores including Lidl, Aldi, Iceland, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose have begun installing perspex screens to shield workers on the tills.

At Tesco Express in Denmark Villas, Hove, staff have been given masks and gloves to wear.

One shop floor worker said: “Of course we’re worried.

“But we’re not wearing masks just for ourselves – we do it for you.”

Many supermarket workers are feeling immense additional strain at a time when stores have reported being busier than at Christmas.

One Brighton woman said her daughter, who works at a local supermarket, had quit and come home “in floods of tears” after being verbally abused by customers.

In a Facebook post, she said shoppers had shouted at her daughter because the items they wanted were not in stock.

She said retail workers are “earning minimum wage and risking their lives” and urged people to “have some consideration for people who are still working and give them a bit of respect”.

  • The coronavirus Sussex Crisis Fund has been set up to help those affected by the pandemic. The Argus’s charity and American Express have each donated £50,000 to kick-start the appeal. Grants will usually be for up to £5,000. More information is available at www.sussexgiving. org.uk/apply. To donate visit www.totalgiving.co.uk/appeal/sussexcrisisfund