Reopen Salons, Barbershops In Yellow Phase: Bucks Co. Lawmakers

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — A group of Bucks County lawmakers are pushing for personal services businesses, like barbershops and salons, to be permitted to reopen in the yellow phase of Pennsylvania's coronavirus mitigation plan.

Senators Steve Santarsiero (D-10) and Maria Collett (D-12) as well as State Representatives Perry Warren (D-31), Tina Davis (D-141), John Galloway (D-140) and Wendy Ullman (D-143) have sent Gov. Tom Wolf a letter asking for him to issue an executive order permitting the personal services businesses be permitted to reopen with enhanced safety measures.

The letter references a plan for reopening of the personal service industry used in neighboring Ohio. That plan includes a list of requirements, such as maintaining six feet of social distancing (except between the client and employee when appropriate), requiring employees to wear facial coverings (with some exceptions), requiring businesses to clean high-touch items after each use, and requiring employees to wear gloves and dispose of gloves in between tasks.

Santarsiero said he had a "productive" call with 45 barbers and hair stylists from across the state, who shared the process for reopening their industry. "Based on the precautions they recommend, paired with the hundreds of hours of training that licensed professionals in the industry receive in sanitation, sterilization and hygiene, I believe it is time to safely reopen this sector of Pennsylvania’s economy.”

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Collett said she's heard from many hair, nail, and tanning salon owners in her district and the majority of them are women- and minority-owned. “It is important that we continue to generate and propose creative solutions and compromises so that businesses in yellow phase counties can begin to resume operations and rebuild while we continue to protect the public health.”

In the letter to Gov. Wolf, the lawmakers say many of these types of businesses are already reopening in violation of the order.

"We are concerned with the health risk associated with such activities as they may or may not be undertaken in accordance with the protocols outlined above. In our view, it would be better to allow businesses in this sector to operate in the yellow phase so that their practices could be regulated by state and local authorities, thereby giving health officials a better chance to mitigate the spread of COVID-19," the letter said.

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