Book advises on food safety, disabilities

Nation's Restaurant News, Nov 29, 2004 by Dina Berta

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's 2001 Model Food Code is a guideline designed to help prevent the spread of food-borne illnesses. When the code was released, the National Restaurant Association was concerned that restaurateurs trying to comply with the FDA regulations for the handling of food would run afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against employees because of a disability or illness. At the NRA's request the FDA and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission put their heads together and came up with another guidebook specifically for the restaurant industry. In October the two agencies released "How to Comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act: A Guide for Restaurant and Other Foodservice Employers."

Steven Grover, vice president of health, safety and regulatory affairs for the NRA, recently discussed the new guidebook, which is available online at www.eeoc.gov.

How might restaurant operators get into trouble with the EEOC by following the food code?

The food code recommends that employees tell their employers if they have been diagnosed with any food-borne-related illness [such as salmonella, hepatitis A, shigella or toxin-producing forms of E. coli]. It's always touchy when asking about the health of employees. We were concerned there would be conflicts with the ADA. We went to the EEOC and asked, "Have you seen this?" and that started the ball rolling.

How can the guidebook help?

It's in a question-and-answer format that gives definitive answers to questions about what you can and cannot ask an employee.

For example?

I think it surprises some people that the answer is yes to the question of whether an employer can refuse to hire or can terminate a person who poses a direct threat to himself or herself and others in the workplace. That's a question that gets asked a lot.

Shouldn't most human-resource executives already know much of that stuff.

It is nothing new for HR directors at many of the chains, though we heard from a number of people in those positions who said the guide is a way to double-check their programs. But we also wanted a guide that was in a format we could send to small restaurant companies and independents. It could make a difference for [those places] that may not have an HR person.