New York (AFP)

Two large American employers took new measures on Friday against the Delta variant: Walmart asked all its employees to put the mask back on in areas where the coronavirus is virulent while Disney has made the vaccine mandatory for all its employees.

These decisions come a few days after the new recommendations of the main federal public health agency of the United States (CDC), which again recommended the wearing of the mask indoors in areas where the circulation of the virus is important, even for women. vaccinated people.

For customers, the number one distribution in the United States Walmart plans to post posters at the entrance of its establishments encouraging them "strongly" to cover the lower part of the face without however forcing them to do so.

But the wearing of a mask will be imposed on employees working in supermarkets, warehouses and offices, whether or not they have received the serum, specifies Walmart on its website.

The company, which has repeatedly set the tone on the instructions to be followed since the start of the pandemic, will indicate the areas concerned each week, according to new data from the CDC on transmission rates.

Last summer, when the mask had become in the United States a symbol of political affiliation between pro and anti-Trump, Walmart took a stand by making it compulsory to wear in its stores, at the risk of displeasing some of its customers. .

- "The best tool" -

In May, the day after the CDC announced a relaxation of mask recommendations, the group decided that facial protection was no longer mandatory in its stores, but remained de rigueur when local law demanded it.

The spread of the Delta variant, which is rocketing Covid-19 cases around the world, has been a game-changer in recent days.

Disney has also re-imposed this week the mask on its visitors in the closed places of its amusement parks.

On Friday, the entertainment giant gave all of its non-union employees 60 days to get fully immunized and began talks for unionized employees.

"Vaccines are the best tool we have to help control this global pandemic and protect our employees," said the group in a statement.

Google and Facebook also announced Wednesday that they would require all their employees brought to their premises to be vaccinated.

Uber followed suit Thursday, according to US media.

Walmart will also require employees working at headquarters and those working in regional offices and traveling regularly to be vaccinated by October 4, according to an internal memo seen by AFP.

To encourage employees working in its stores, the group doubled the vaccination premium to $ 150.

Twitter has for its part decided to close the New York and San Francisco offices, and to put on hold all plans to reopen other sites.

Officials are not left out: Joe Biden took a series of measures Thursday to boost vaccination in the United States, including the requirement for millions of federal employees either to be vaccinated or to wear the mask in continuous and regular testing.

© 2021 AFP