(St. Paul, Minn.) – Today the mayors in St. Paul and Minneapolis announced a vaccination mandate for patrons, largely for bars and restaurants. Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association Executive Director Tony Chesak issued the following statement:
“We understand the seriousness of COVID and the public health for the community, patrons, and employees. The hospitality industry has complied with all the mandates, regulations, and more for COVID. But it’s hard to understand a vaccination mandate that’s unjustified and unscientific. It targets just one specific industry after zero science or data driving the decision, and zero caring about our dedicated front-line workers who will now add “enforcement agent” to their plates. The only scientific thing we know is that it has devastated the hospitality industry in other cities with these same mandates.
They say we’re in this together – but this mandate shows that the hospitality industry is clearly targeted alone. We know both vaccinated and unvaccinated people spread the virus. And it happens at schools, work-out facilities, other retailers, sporting events, and more.”
###
The Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association (MLBA) represents Minnesota’s small, family-owned liquor retailers, both on-sale (of bars and restaurants) and off-sale (at liquor stores).