Since I've been asked about this numerous times, I'll address it here. More than two dozen Cayuga County restaurants and stores have been fined for violating COVID-19 rules. But there is one I get asked about more than any other: Wegmans.
Robert Harding
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Robert Harding
@RobertHarding
Government and politics reporter for @The_Citizen. Husband. #GirlDad. Uncle. Bills Mafia. Sabres and Nationals fan. DMs open for news tips.
- Replying to @RobertHardingTheir message is clear: How is this fair? Why is there one standard for certain businesses, while others face no penalties? These are good questions, and I plan on asking them.
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00:00 - Replying to @RobertHardingThey said that they had a conversation with someone at Wegmans' corporate office. Based on that discussion, she offered this assessment: "I just don't think they believe in it. That's the bottom line."
- Replying to @RobertHardingSince the state's COVID-19 mask mandate took effect, I have received several messages from readers about Wegmans not enforcing the mask rule. Their stories are consistent: They observe a customer not wearing a mask and they report it to an employee.
- It’s official: My wife does not have cancer. The tumor was benign, which is what the preliminary tests showed a couple of weeks ago. An exciting day in this household.
- Replying to @RobertHardingSome of the people who have contacted me about Wegmans do so after seeing local businesses, including locally-owned grocery stores, fined for not enforcing the mask mandate. One grocery store was fined today for the second time.
- Replying to @RobertHardingThat's quite a statement about how this supermarket chain is responding to the pandemic. That has stayed with me for two months because I wondered what would come next. Would Wegmans face a stiffer penalty? Would there be additional penalties for these other complaints?
- Replying to @RobertHardingAt the board of health meeting, a county official says that Wegmans paid the $50 but *did not* sign the order. That's significant because not agreeing to the consent order should trigger a hearing and the possibility of a stiffer penalty.
- Replying to @RobertHardingThese people tell me the same thing: A Wegmans employee (or management) responds with some variation of "There is nothing we can do."
- Replying to @RobertHardingI planned on following up on this two months ago, but then our COVID cases spiked and there may have been an election I had to cover. I am following up on this after Thanksgiving.
- Replying to @RobertHardingThese comments stayed with me as local businesses, many of which are small businesses, faced fines for either not abiding by the mask rules or not enforcing them. And then I sat down to watch the Cayuga County Board of Health meeting in September.
- Replying to @RobertHardingThis was surprising to some members of the board. One said that he "always thought of (Wegmans) as taking the approach of being a good corporate citizen." And then came the big blow from a health department official.
- Replying to @RobertHardingWhat I wasn't prepared for was a long discussion about Wegmans. It was revealed, for the first time, that the board issued a consent order against Wegmans for violating the state mask mandate. But that wasn't the highlight.
