Shop worker praised for confronting banned anti-masker in New Zealand

The maskless man claimed the employee was violating his human rights

An employee has been praised for confronting an anti-masker who tried to enter their store in Helensville, New Zealand, after already being banned from the premises.

In a video posted on social media, the employee, who works for Mitre 10, a chain of home improvement stores in New Zealand, asks the customer to put on a mask.

The maskless man refuses and tells the camera: “See, that‘s how you do it and then you don’t sign in,” referring to Covid tracer app signs.

“And now I‘m going to walk through here with my camera this time,” he continues before being interrupted by a member of staff.

The employee asks him to put his mask on and an argument ensues as the man claims his human rights are being violated.

The employee says: “We‘re not discriminating against you mate we’re asking you to put a mask on.”

A store guard joins the employee, and tells the man is already banned for two years for a prior incident.

Eventually, the maskless man is removed from the premises.

The video of the altercation, which took place in a Mitre 10 branch in Helensville, has been shared widely on social media, with users praising the employee’s actions.

One Twitter user wished staff at Mitre 10 a merry Christmas:

Another user said if anyone sees the employee, they should “buy him a beer”:

Masks are mandatory across all Mitre 10 stores in Aotearoa, and as the store is private property, they can legally stop people. Anyone who remains in the store thereafter is committing a criminal offence.

The Independent has contacted Mitre 10 for comment.