Celestine Sein-Win cannot afford to take time off from running his grocery store in the Perth suburb of Bedford.
The family business, Burmese World, is being hit from multiple sides by COVID-19, with his turnover dropping about 20 per cent as a result.
Ongoing restrictions and fear of catching the virus have led to fewer people walking through his door.
"This month is very slow for us because of the border reopening and people worry about the positive cases and [there are] not many people going out," he said.
On top of that, several of his staff have had to self-isolate recently because they or their children tested positive or were close contacts.
He and his wife work close to 12-hours every day to make up the gap.
It has left Mr Sein-Win looking forward to most level 2 restrictions being relaxed from Thursday.
Mask requirement turning customers off
Customers to his store will no longer have to check in, a measure that will only remain for venues that require proof of vaccination, like cafes, restaurants and bars, as well as hospitals.
Mr Sein-Win welcomed that change but said the mask mandate was the real problem for him.
"The mask is the main issue. [Customers] say, 'we don't need to wear it'," he said.
"We are in a catch-22, if you force them … we might lose a customer.
Premier Mark McGowan has repeatedly said the impact of changing restrictions would be monitored and the government intended to ease restrictions even further as soon as it was safe to do so.
"As soon as we can get out of it, we will," Mr McGowan told reporters on Monday.
CHO warned against lifting restrictions too early
Western Australia recorded 7,288 new COVID-19 yesterday, with 210 patients in hospital and nine of them in intensive care.
The figure is below WA's current pandemic-high of 8,616 new cases, reported last Thursday, but it is unclear if that represents the peak of the current Omicron wave.
In his now-published health advice recommending the easing of most level two restrictions this Thursday, Chief Health Officer Andy Robertson said the Omicron modelling conducted by the Department of Health estimated the likely peak would come at the end of March.
"Based on WA's current case numbers, the modelling and the trends observed, reaching a peak within the next week is likely, noting that the date of the actual peak may not be confirmed until at least one week after it has been reached," he wrote.
In the same health advice, Dr Robertson warned against easing level two public health and social measures (PHSMs) too early, appearing to suggest restrictions should be downgraded later than they will be.
"It is my advice, as Chief Health Officer, that Level 2 PHSMs should ideally not be downgraded to Level 1 PHSMs until a minimum of one week and preferably two weeks after the peak of Omicron cases has been reached in WA," he said.
"Any reduction of Level 2 PHSMs prior to that should be conducted with caution.
"A transition to lowering PHSMs prior to the peak can be considered, in the full knowledge that this may have the effect of increasing cases and hospitalisations."
A state government spokesperson said the measures coming into effect on Thursday were "identical" to those recommended by Dr Robertson in his advice.
"Importantly, these measures include maintaining a high level of protection for our most vulnerable, such as aged-care and hospital settings, as well as greater restrictions for high-risk venues for an additional two weeks," the spokesperson said.
Mr McGowan yesterday acknowledged case numbers and hospitalisations would still likely grow, but they would be monitored to ensure the "softest landing possible" and to avoid "turmoil".
WA 'ready to move forward': opposition
Opposition Leader Mia Davies said the timing was right to remove most level two restrictions.
"I stand by the fact I think West Australians were ready to see those level two restrictions be removed," she said.
"It was having a serious impact on the business community and also communities that were trying to plan for events.
"We need to make sure that we remain sensible and vigilant.
"There are public health mandates still in place and I really think the West Australian public are ready to move forward and live with COVID in the community."
