Walmart has joined other large retailers in requiring masks.

As the US becomes the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, private businesses have begun taking sanitation matters into their own hands. Despite the fact that there is not yet a federal mandate on wearing face masks outside, several large business chains, including Starbucks, Best Buy, and Costco, have begun requiring all employees and customers to wear masks to enter their locations. Today, a powerful new ally joined the mask cause: the largest retailer in the world, Walmart.

This morning, Walmart announced that starting next week, all customers and employees will be required to wear some manner of face covering.

“As the number of confirmed cases has spiked in communities across the country recently, so too have the number and types of face covering mandates being implemented,” Walmart said in a press release. “To help bring consistency across stores and clubs, we will require all shoppers to wear a face covering starting Monday, July 20. This will give us time to inform customers and members of the changes, post signage and train associates on the new protocols.”

While Walmart has floated the idea of mandatory masks previously, they, like many other retailers, have been concerned about antagonizing customers who refuse to wear coverings, as well as forcing their employees into confrontational situations with said customers. But with US coronavirus cases totaling over 3.3 million and deaths over 130,000, industry leaders have begun echoing the CDC’s advisories that “face coverings are meant to protect other people.”

Recently, the Retail Leaders Industry Association publicly called on governors around the country to begin passing mask mandates in their jurisdictions. The United Food and Commercial Workers’ Union echoed this sentiment as well, urging government leaders and business owners to consider requiring masks.