Barnes & Noble must close their bookstores and locations during the COVID-19 pandemic and provide paid leave for their booksellers and employees.

As more cities begin lockdowns, Barnes & Noble continues to have their stores open, with their only "precaution" being changed store hours. Thus, as the pandemic worsens and begins reaching its peak, Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt is being complicit in putting booksellers and customers at risk of exposure to COVID-19. It is completely absurd to put the communities that Barnes & Noble wishes to serve in danger for business purposes. Thus, it is absolutely imperative to close their stores during the pandemic. 

In addition, it is also imperative to provide paid leave to their booksellers as stores remain closed. Barnes and Noble is the largest bookseller in the United States, and many of its employees are part-time working paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet. As the need to quarantine becomes more urgent, we cannot make booksellers decide between their lives and their finances. Thus, Barnes and Noble must provide paid leave for their employees during the pandemic. 

James Daunt, please consider everyone's safety.