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1. Can food employees work if their symptoms are from a non-infectious condition?

Yes, food employees can work as long as they can provide medical documentation indicating that the symptoms are from a non-infectious condition. Some non-infectious conditions include Crohn's disease, irritable bowel syndrome, some liver diseases, and symptoms commonly experienced during stages of pregnancy.

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

2. Do food employees have a responsibility to prevent foodborne illness?

Yes, food employees share the responsibility with management for preventing foodborne illness and are required to know:

• The relationship between their job responsibilities and the potential risks of foodborne illness
• How employee health is related to foodborne illness
• The need to immediately report symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, sore throat with fever, diagnosis of illness caused by a BIG 5 pathogen, exposure to a BIG 5 pathogen, or an exposed infected wound or cut on the hands or arms to their manager
• How restriction and/or exclusion from working with food prevents foodborne illness
• How proper hand hygiene and no bare hand contact with RTE (Ready to Eat) food can prevent foodborne illness

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

3. If an infected wound, cut, or burn is covered can an employee continue working?

Yes, food employees, can continue working as long as the wound, cut, or burn is properly covered with a waterproof cover like a finger cot and disposable glove, or a dry, durable, tight-fitting bandage.

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

4. What types of exposure must food employees report to management?

If a food employee is exposed to any of the following situations it must be reported:

• Ingesting or handling food that was implicated in a foodborne outbreak
• Consuming food that was prepared by someone with an illness that resulted from one of the BIG 5 pathogens
• Attending or working in a location that had a confirmed foodborne illness outbreak
• Living with someone who works or was in a location that was known to have had a foodborne illness outbreak
• Living with someone how was diagnosed with an illness that resulted from one of the BIG 5 pathogens

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

5. What hand washing steps do employees need to follow?

Clean hands and exposed portions of arms for at least 20 seconds by the following method:

1. Rinse under clean, warm running water
2. Apply soap and rub all surfaces of the hands and fingers together vigorously for at least 10 to 15 seconds
3. Rinse thoroughly with clean, warm running water
4. Thoroughly dry the hands and exposed portions of arms with single-use paper towels or a heated-air hand-drying device

6. What other precautions can a food employee take to prevent the spread of foodborne illness?

Food employees can prevent foodborne illness by:

• Not touching RTE (Ready to Eat) food with bare hands
• Washing hands frequently, especially whenever they are soiled or have touched anything that has contaminated them
• Not working when ill
• Knowing all aspects of food handling and the risk factors associated with foodborne illness
• Being aware that uncontrolled risk factors can cause consumers to have foodborne illness

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

7. What should food employees do if they are not feeling well and their skin or eyes turn yellow?

Report the symptoms to their manager and seek medical attention. The employee should not return to work until after receiving clearance from a health practitioner. If the employee is jaundice for more than 7 days, clearance from the local health department is required.

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

8. What should food employees do if they have a sore throat with fever?

Report the illness to the manager and, if possible, continue working while remaining aware that the manager could consider reassignment to a position that does not include the handling of food, food-contact equipment, utensils, or single-service articles. If the employee works in a food establishment serving a Highly Susceptible Population (HSP), such as a hospital, nursing home, assisted living facility, or a daycare center, the employee must stop working and go home until he or she obtains clearance from a health practitioner and presents it to the manager.

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

9. What should food employees do if they have an infected wound, burn or cut on their hand or arm?

Report the wound, burn or cut to the manager and properly cover it with a clean, impermeable bandage and a single-use glove (for hand wounds) before returning to work.

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

10. What should food employees do when they have symptoms of vomiting or diarrhea?

If at work:

• Stop work immediately
• Report to management
• Go home and return after at least 24 hours have passed since the vomiting or diarrhea symptoms have ended

If the symptoms occur before the employee arrives to work, he or she should:

• Notify the manager by telephone
• Do not report to work until at least 24 hours have passed after the vomiting or diarrhea symptoms have ended

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

11. When should food employees wash their hands?

They should do this immediately after engaging in activities that contaminate the hands and:

• When entering a food preparation area
• Before putting on clean, single-use gloves and between glove changes
• Before engaging in food preparation
• Before handling clean equipment and serving utensils
• When changing tasks and switching between handling raw foods and working with RTE (Ready to Eat) foods
• After handling soiled dishes, equipment, or utensils
• After touching bare human body parts
• After using the toilet
• After coughing, sneezing, blowing the nose, using tobacco, eating, or drinking
• After caring for or handling service animals or aquatic animals

FDA Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Handbook

12. Where can food employees learn more about preventing foodborne illness and following effective food safety practices?

Foodborne illness information resources:

• FDA / CFSAN
• CDC National Center for Infectious Disease