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The new “green corridors” for shopping are creating more stress than solutions, creating queues and risky crowds in front of stores, according to the position of the Association for Modern Commerce (SMT), of which all 12 members are members. more important. Retail chains in Bulgaria: Billa, Deichmann, dm, Kaufland, Lidl, Mr. Bricolage, ProMarket, T Market, Avanti, Fantastico and Hipoland.
The measure is practically inapplicable because the employees of the chains or security companies have to determine the age of the clients by appearance, which is cause for conflict. By law, they do not have the authority to request and verify personal documents, the association recalled.
According to the retail chains, the “green corridors” violate the rights of both older and younger customers and want the measure lifted.
“Introducing a ‘green corridor’ for people 65 and older from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. at points of sale creates more tension than solutions in a pandemic and increases the risk of infection with KOVID 19. The Association for Modern Commerce considers the measure ineffective.
It does not create a safer shopping environment, on the contrary, it creates queues and risky crowds in front of stores at the beginning and end of the “corridor”. During a pandemic, store crews and society as a whole witnessed this cause of justified fear. and understandable consumer dissatisfaction.
The measure will not fulfill its role of protecting vulnerable people, because it is their right to choose shopping hours outside the advertised corridor. And there have been enough voices in the media that the recommended time frame is not and cannot be suitable for everyone.
The measure restricts the rights of workers over 65, who would not be able to take advantage of the opportunity to shop in the aisle. According to ombudsman Diana Kovacheva, the meaning of the measure should be to grant, not take away, rights. According to the Association for Modern Commerce, the introduced green corridors confront us with the second hypothesis.
The measure also violates the rights of people under 65 years of age. It makes it difficult for them to shop and confuses their daily rhythm. The wide three-hour window limits them even further, as parents of students and young children in the morning are busy taking care of them and helping organize their online learning, and adults who telecommute have to shop after 4pm: 30 due to the ban on shopping in the green corridor.
This additionally and artificially creates preconditions for aggregation and non-compliance with anti-epidemic measures of social distance. The restriction also makes it difficult for shift workers.
The measure is practically inapplicable because the employees of the chains or security companies have to determine the age of the clients by appearance, which is cause for conflict. By law, they do not have the authority to request and verify personal documents.
The move leads to situations of constant conflict, which endangers the health of employees and the safety of the sites and creates a danger of cascading infection of employees and inability to perform their duties. This can lead to a shortage of equipment and the inability to service and operate the sites. SMT recalls that retail chain teams have also been at the forefront since the beginning of the crisis.
The measure was not explained clearly enough. Its original appearance, as well as its subsequent adjustment, confused Bulgarian consumers and created ambiguities in its application. Some people over 65 years old did not understand that at the moment the corridor is one and it is from 13:30 to 16:30.
At the same time, the restrictions are only for supermarkets and pharmacies. Other sites, which can also be crowded, are outside the scope of such measures. This makes it pointless to have such a time slot in stores where the stay is for a much shorter time. There are also no “corridors” in public transport.
The companies of the Association for Modern Trade recall that the retail chains invest significant funds to ensure a safe environment for users and equipment: for periodic disinfection, protective equipment, Plexiglas barriers, information materials, etc. Preventive measures applied against KOVID-19 should ensure a safe purchase for all consumers, regardless of their age or when they choose to buy.
In conclusion, we propose to leave the “green corridor” to visit the shops of people aged 65 and over, and we believe that the implementation of a measure is directly related to whether people are convinced of the effect of its observance. Your goals and how to implement them should be explained in detail.
We are ready to carry out a joint campaign with the Ministry of Health, aimed at people under 65 years of age, with a call to refrain from making purchases between 8:00 and 10:00. Thus, everyone will have the opportunity to voluntarily exercise social responsibility as per the recommendation without being obliged to do so, regardless of their age and according to their personal daily routine, and in case of impossibility or urgent need they can make their purchases without restrictions. This flexibility will eliminate both the dangerous crowding of people caused by the current measure and the discontent and tension. With regard to the Association for Modern Commerce, the authorities of our country have a partner who will support this campaign with more explanatory measures in the commercial sites of the companies ”.
The age restriction for shopping was introduced by the health minister in his order of November 13.
In its section of stores and pharmacies it reads:
“Grocery stores organize their work by not allowing people under 65 to enter the respective sites between 1:30 PM and 4:30 PM. Only people over 65 are allowed access at specified times.
Pharmacies will organize their work by not admitting people under 65 years of age in the respective establishments between 8:00 and 10:00 and 13:30 and 16:30. Only people 65 and over will be admitted at the specified time.
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