Under the OSH Act, OSHA’s statutory mission is to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for workers by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education, and assistance. Employers must comply with all applicable occupational safety and health standards and regulations, whether they are issued and enforced by OSHA or by an OSHA-approved State Plan.

OSHA does not have any specific standards addressing foodborne pathogens leading to workplace illnesses. However, section 5(a)(1) (the General Duty Clause) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) requires employers to provide their workers with a workplace free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm, which, in some circumstances, could include foodborne diseases. 

Section 11(c) of the OSH Act, 29 USC 660(c), prohibits employers from retaliating against workers for raising concerns about safety and health conditions. OSHA encourages workers who suffer such discrimination to submit a complaint to OSHA. Workers have 30 days to file their complaints.

Additionally, OSHA enforces Section 402 of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which prohibits entities engaged in manufacturing, processing, packing, transporting, distributing, receiving, holding, or importing food from retaliating against employees for engaging in certain protected activities. Restaurants, grocery stores, other retail food establishments, farms, food testing laboratories, and food-safety inspection services are all covered entities under FSMA. Employees of these entities are protected from retaliation when they (1) provide information they reasonably believe is related to a violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C) to their employer, the Federal Government, or the attorney general of a state; (2) testify, assist, or participate in a proceeding concerning a violation of the FD&C; or (3) object to or refuse to participate in any activity that they reasonably believe to be in violation of the FD&C. Please note that FSMA does not apply to an entity that is subject to U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) mandatory inspection authority (e.g., a meat, poultry, or egg product processing facility) if that entity does not also manufacture, process, pack, transport, distribute, receive, hold, or import food that is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

OSHA Standards and Requirements

Below is a list of OSHA standards and regulations that are relevant to occupational exposure to foodborne illnesses, including exposure to chemical hazards during sanitization. Employers should consider foodborne illness hazards as they develop compliance plans, and OSHA may cite one or more of these standards if an employer fails to protect its employees from foodborne pathogens, including contaminated food or beverages (including drinking water), addressed by the standards. 

Employers who are not covered by the OSH Act (like public sector employers in some states) can use this guidance to identify useful infection control measures that help reduce the risk of contracting foodborne diseases in their workplace.