The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C.) released a report on Tuesday, which said that sick food workers were linked to 40% of food poisoning outbreaks from 2017 to 2019. Of the 800 food poisoning outbreaks investigated by 25 state and local health departments, people showing up to work while sick were responsible for 205 outbreaks, while contaminated raw food items caused 88, and cross-contaminated ingredients caused 68. The report stated that comprehensive policies for ill workers could combat these outbreaks, including policies for paid sick leaves. According to research, expanded paid sick leave causes fewer food workers to report to work while sick and lessens the rate of foodborne diseases associated with paid sick leave regulations. The report also revealed that most outbreaks of food poisoning were due to Salmonella or Norovirus. The report called for better enforcement of existing policies that prevent sick workers from coming to work and for employers to have backup plans when employees report sick. The report also urged businesses to implement plans that do not penalize workers that report sick and to adopt a culture where absenteeism due to illness is not frowned upon. The report also highlighted that the US is the only wealthy country with no federal paid sick leave. Studies have shown that without paid sick leave, food workers do show up for work while sick, with reasons ranging from lack of back-up to cover their shifts to fear of retaliation from their supervisors.
