SUPERMARKET workers will be celebrating the easing of restrictions more than some when they can finally take their masks off on shop floors across Victoria.
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One store owner has been joking with staff about everyone throwing their masks up in the air as the clock strikes 6pm on Friday.
It probably will not be quite that dramatic, but it will still be a relief, the Maiden Gully and Strathfieldsaye IGA's Braden Geyer said.
"We will certainly be welcoming it with open arms," he said.
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"We always prefer to have that personal experience with our customers. We have still been able to have that with people through all the social distancing and masks, and we can still make eye contact with people, but it's just not the same."
Mr Geyer paid tribute to the staff members who had worked on shop floors throughout the pandemic.
"It's been alright for people like me up in the office because we have been able to take them off sometimes," he said.
Supermarket workers across the country have made themselves available throughout the pandemic, despite an elevated risk of infection due to the public nature of their workplaces.
For more on easing COVID-19 restrictions, click here.
Many have had to grapple with runs on products and customers who have been worried about what might happen if an outbreak hit.
Even though masks will not be required in retail settings from Friday night, people will still need to carry one on them at all times and wear it on public transport, in rideshare vehicles and taxis, and in sensitive settings like hospitals and aged care facilities.
The changes are part of a raft of changes announced on Tuesday.
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