There’s no denying we’re living in scary times right now. Who would have ever thought grocery shopping would become a stressful task? Grocery stores around the country have been struggling to keep shelves stocked, manage crowds of worried shoppers and sanitize stores all at the same time. It’s a daunting task and we could not be more thankful for the dedicated employees that show up every day to ensure we are able to stock up on necessary supplies. Unfortunately, one of our favorite grocery store, Trader Joe’s, has had to temporarily close some of their stores because they may have become contaminated with the virus that is responsible for so much chaos in the world right now: COVID-19.
Trader Joe’s posted an announcement on their website stating several stores would be temporarily closed for cleaning. Here are the locations of the closed stores:
- New York (Murray Hill), NY – Trader Joe’s on 200 E 32nd St
- Scarsdale, NY – Trader Joe’s on 727 White Plains Rd
- Rego Park, NY – Trader Joe’s on 90-30 Metropolitan Ave
- New York (Essex Crossing) , NY – Trader Joe’s on 400 Grand St (Cellar)
- New York (Union Square Grocery), NY – Trader Joe’s on 142 E 14th St
- Metairie, LA – Trader Joe’s on 2949 Veterans Blvd
- New York (Union Square Wine), NY – Trader Joe’s on 138 E 14th St
- New York (Chelsea), NY – Trader Joe’s on 675 6th Ave
- Brooklyn, NY – Trader Joe’s on 130 Court St
- Garden City, NY – Trader Joe’s on 910 Old Country Rd
- New York (SoHo) , NY – Trader Joe’s on 233 Spring St
- New York (Columbus Ave) , NY – Trader Joe’s on 670 Columbus Ave
- Hartsdale, NY – Trader Joe’s on 15 North Central Ave
The Rego Park store was hit especially hard with five crew members testing positive yesterday. We reached out to Trader Joe’s for comment and will update this story when we hear back. A crew member in each of the other stores has either tested positive for COVID-19 or is receiving treatment for a suspected case. If you visited one of these stores, you can check out Trader Joe’s website for further instructions.
Trader Joe’s is known for treating its employees well so despite the stores being closed, Trader Joe’s will still be paying all of their crew members for their scheduled shifts.
Trader Joe’s is taking a lot of precautions to help protect the safety of their employees. According to a statement posted to their website, Trader Joe’s is implementing wellness checks for crew members that “screen for potential exposure to COVID-19 and for symptoms consistent with a COVID-19 infection.” They are also adjusting store hours to allow for increased store cleanings to help ensure the coronavirus is not being spread throughout the store and communities. Check out lines are now fitted with plexiglass barriers that protect employees and customers and Trader Joe’s is limiting the number of people allowed into a store at a time to ensure social distancing best practices are being followed.
Before you go, check out our slideshow below:
A version of this article was originally published March 24, 2020.
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