ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota is now requiring its 37,000-plus state employees to wear masks in the workplace.
The new mandate applies to all indoor settings and outdoor ones where social distancing isn't possible. It does not apply to the many employees who are working from home.
The move is in line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s updated masking guidance, which recommends everyone—including vaccinated people—wear masks indoors in parts of the country where COVID-19 is surging because of the Delta variant. The CDC’s coronavirus tracker shows over 50 counties in Minnesota are now considered to have substantial or high risk of coronavirus transmission.
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Earlier this week, Minneapolis and St. Paul and several other cities and counties mandated all employees and visitors wear masks inside city or county-owned buildings, regardless of vaccination status. In Minneapolis, city staff are also required to mask up when indoors in spaces of public accommodation, such as businesses.