CDC Report Highlights the Role of Ill Employees in Spreading Contaminants
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals that sick workers are a major factor in the spread of foodborne illnesses in restaurants and food establishments. The report, which covers outbreaks between 2017 and 2019, found that nearly 40% of outbreaks with known causes were linked to contamination from an infected or ill employee.
One of the most notable examples cited in the report was a 2017 norovirus outbreak at a Chipotle restaurant in Sterling, Virginia, where an employee came to work while sick, contributing to the spread of the virus. Norovirus, which causes vomiting and diarrhea, was the most common cause of foodborne illness outbreaks at U.S. restaurants, accounting for 47% of the 800 outbreaks identified. Salmonella, responsible for symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps, was the second most prevalent pathogen, making up nearly 19% of the outbreaks.
The CDC’s report also stressed the importance of restaurants enforcing stricter policies regarding sick workers. The agency recommends that food establishments require employees to notify their managers if they are ill and stay home when symptomatic. While many restaurants have some sick worker policies in place, the report revealed that these policies are often incomplete and not consistently followed.
Out of the managers surveyed by the CDC, 92% stated their restaurants had a policy requiring sick employees to report symptoms. However, only 66% of those policies were documented, and just 23% listed all five symptoms that the FDA recommends for notifying a manager: vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, sore throat with fever, and lesions with pus.
Moreover, although over 85% of managers reported having a policy to prevent sick employees from working, only 62% had it in writing, and only 18% listed all the symptoms recommended by the FDA.
Experts like Darin Detwiler, a food regulatory policy professor at Northeastern University, emphasized that the issue is not limited to individual employees but extends to management not enforcing health department guidelines effectively. This oversight could be contributing to the ongoing risk of foodborne illness outbreaks.
