Coronavirus: First fines issued under new NSW mask laws
A man has been charged, two have been fined and dozens more warned for failing to wear masks in NSW.
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A man has been charged, two have been fined and dozens more warned for failing to wear masks in NSW as supermarket chains urge shoppers to cover their faces and treat workers with respect.
NSW Police have handed out three $200 fines in line with the new public health orders mandating masks in shops, places of worship and on public transport in the Greater Sydney area.
Officers at Strathfield, at 9:30am on Monday, allege they saw a man steal an energy drink from a store.
He took off his mask as he was arrested for shoplifting and argued with police, they said in a statement on Tuesday.
The allegedly aggressive man was ultimately charged with shoplifting, resist police, two counts of intimidating an officer and failing to wear a mask in a business.
He was refused bail and ordered to front court on Tuesday.
Officers also handed out a $200 fine to a man at Seven Hills after he was spotted at a train station without a mask. Police say he swore at them and told them to fine him.
A third man was also fined in Parramatta after being spotted in a shopping centre without a mask. He had been warned earlier in the day.
Police also handed out more than 25 warnings in the first day the laws were to be enforced amid a growing virus cluster at Berala in the city’s west.
Many shoppers have reported tense confrontations with people who refuse to wear masks in store.
Some say they’ve complained to store staff but the enforcement of the public health orders falls to NSW Police.
Many have reported seeing police walking around shopping centres and approaching people without masks.
Coles and Woolworths are asking customers to mask up for all stores in Greater Sydney unless they have an exemption. All workers are doing the same.
“We continue to strongly encourage the wearing of masks in our NSW stores outside of Sydney and have face masks available for sale in our supermarkets across the state,” a spokeswoman said on Tuesday.
“Along with our enhanced cleaning and sanitisation measures, this will help us provide a safer environment for our customers and team members.”
“We encourage those customers who can‘t wear masks or a face covering due to valid medical reasons to consider making use of our pick up or home delivery options,” a Woolworths spokesman added.
The few Woolworths staff who are exempt from the masks are being issued with stickers indicating they have a medical reason for not wearing the protective equipment.
Supermarket staff are not able or expected to enforce the mask laws in the same way they do not chase down shoplifters but work with authorities who enforce the laws.
Both Coles and Woolworths called on shoppers to treat their employees with respect after a difficult year that saw brawls in the aisles over toilet paper and shelves stripped bare by panicked customers.
The pleas from the retailers come after protesters stormed a Bondi shopping centre carrying placards resisting the mask mandate while others began sharing disinformation about masks online following the new health orders.
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