Illnesses contracted at Chipotles were then reported in seven more states, including Illinois, Pennsylvania and Maryland.
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“I represent a total of 75 people, but I haven’t filed all their lawsuits yet”, Marler claims.
LUCY NICHOLSON/REUTERS The chain has been plagued with falling sales after reports of E. coli and norovirus at several locations past year.
Federal officials have not yet said that the E. Coli outbreak is over, and the company’s usually high-flying stock is still down more than 30 percent from pre-food poisoning levels. Chipotle is also the subject of a criminal investigation examining whether there was any wrongdoing in how the company chose to handle its food safety problems.
Short interest in Chipotle grew to 8.2 percent of outstanding shares at the end of December from 7.3 percent in mid-December, according to Nasdaq data. Executives want the risk of another food scare to be “near zero”.
However, until the company can figure out a way to not have its food contaminated with disease, Chipotle will not win back the many customers it has lost. The company also says it has sanitized all restaurants in the chain and has implemented safety audits and restocked food at all restaurants.
“We have been sharing information with [employees] on a regular basis, but thought it would be great for them to hear directly from our leaders”, Chipotle comms director Chris Arnold told PRWeek via email, when asked why the chain chose to take this strategy.
Chipotle said the meeting would provide an opportunity to thank employees, discuss changes and answer questions.
“I haven’t been to Chipotle since the outbreaks”. All staff will be involved and the primary topic will be improved food safety. This type of service set Chipotle apart from other fast food Mexican restaurants and gave customers the feeling of having fresh ingredients in their meals.
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The move is a part of a campaign to gain back the trust of the public, and investors, in Chipotle. The company has yet to confirm the cause of the outbreak.
