Is it safe to receive clothes deliveries and could they spread coronavirus?

With high street clothing stores closed during the coronavirus pandemic, more people than ever are getting their fashion fix online.

However, workers in fashion warehouses have warned that an explosion in online orders means they have had to continue working as the pandemic rages on.

How might online sales spread coronavirus?

Working in crowded conditions, staff at warehouses across the UK have said they fear catching or transmitting coronavirus while on the job.

In late March, for instance, a survey carried out by the GMB union found that more than 98 per cent of the 460 workers surveyed at the Asos warehouse in Barnsley said they felt unsafe at work - even after safety measures were introduced.

One worker told The Mirror that conditions made it practically impossible to follow government guidance on social distancing:

“The bosses said online shopping should be encouraged. But it’s almost impossible to socially distance. There’s a minimum of 500 people there.

“I’m sat 3ft from somebody. There’s somebody else 3ft away from me in another direction.”

Another worker accused the company of  "playing roulette with people’s lives.”

According to The Guardian, workers at the Barnsley warehouse said that the company had not supplied sufficient stocks of protective gear for staff - such as gloves and hand sanitiser.

They also said that they fear staff coming into work while ill, as workers at the warehouse are only able to claim statutory sick pay - £94.25 a week - if they take time off.

Tim Roache, the GMB general secretary told the paper: