Is It Recordable?
Scenario Q192

Food Poisoning: is it recordable?

Verdict: Recordable
Published 2021-07-12

Question

To celebrate the dedicated service of a 40-year employee, the CEO takes him and his team out for lunch at a restaurant. The entire team gets food poisoning from the meal and each are hospitalized. Is it recordable?

Answer

YES. A company-provided meal that resulted in food poisoning is specifically noted as work-related in the recordkeeping guidelines.

1904.5(b)(2)(iv) If the employee is made ill by ingesting food contaminated by workplace contaminants (such as lead), or gets food poisoning from food supplied by the employer, the case would be considered work-related.

1904.5(a)You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment, unless an exception in §1904.5(b)(2) specifically applies

1904.5(b)(1)What is the "work environment"? OSHA defines the work environment as "the establishment and other locations where one or more employees are working or are present as a condition of their employment. The work environment includes not only physical locations, but also the equipment or materials used by the employee during the course of his or her work."

How to Report a Hospitalization

Illustration for the scenario: Food Poisoning

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Illustration for the scenario: Food Poisoning
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This is guidance based on 29 CFR Part 1904 and OSHA letters of interpretation. Facts and details may be altered or fictional. As specified by OSHA, the employer is responsible for the final recordability determination.