CDC Finds That Sick Workers Linked , to a Majority of Foodborne Illness Outbreaks.<br />NBC reports that new data suggests that sick employees <br />at restaurants and other food establishments are a major <br />contributor to the spread of foodborne illnesses. .<br />According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control <br />and Prevention (CDC), around 40% of foodborne <br />outbreaks were linked to sick or infectious workers.<br />In 2017, Chipotle attributed an outbreak <br />of norovirus to an employee who <br />came to work despite being sick.<br />In 2017, Chipotle attributed an outbreak <br />of norovirus to an employee who <br />came to work despite being sick.<br />Between 2017 and 2019, norovirus was <br />the most common pathogen involved <br />with outbreaks at restaurants in the U.S. .<br />Of 800 outbreaks, norovirus accounted <br />for 47% that were identified by the CDC.<br />Another 19% of the outbreaks were reportedly <br />linked to Salmonella, a bacteria that results <br />in diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps.<br />NBC reports that the CDC has recommended <br />that restaurants adopt and enforce policies that <br />require workers to stay home if they are ill.<br />Ill workers continue to play <br />a substantial role in retail <br />food establishment outbreaks,<br /> and comprehensive ill worker <br />policies will likely be necessary to <br />mitigate this public health problem, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report, via NBC.<br />However, NBC reports that the CDC report <br />also found that less than half of food <br />establishments offered workers paid sick leave. .<br />If companies value their employees' <br />health and their customers' health, then they <br />would not be responding reactively to these <br />things. They would be taking proactive steps <br />to prevent these things from happening, Darin Detwiler, Northeastern University <br />food regulatory policy professor, via NBC
