12% Of Restaurant Workers Come In While Vomiting

Jaya Saxena

Published Feb 20, 2011

Modified Feb 20, 2011

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Jaya Saxena

Published Feb 20, 2011

Modified Feb 20, 2011

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Here's an argument in favor of more paid sick leave: according to a new study, one in eight restaurant workers has come to work at least twice in the past year while suffering from vomiting or diarrhea. Factors associated with workers coming in while sick include a lack of on-call workers and lack of policies requiring workers to report their illnesses to managers. Author Dr. Stephen Sumner told CNN, "It may be if you're working in a busy place your manager is less likely to send you home, or you may feel bad to leave your coworker stranded on a busy shift."

The study says, "Our findings suggest that policies that encourage workers to tell managers when they are ill and that help mitigate pressures to work while ill could reduce the number of food workers who work while experiencing vomiting or diarrhea." We're also sure it couldn't hurt those restaurant grades. Opponents said that paid sick leave could hurt businesses, but as Manhattan BP Scott Stringer previously said, "Think about going to breakfast in the morning, and ordering a bagel, and getting a side dish of H1N1, because the person who served it was not feeling well." And don't forget, cholera is back!

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Jaya Saxena

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