OSHA fines Dollar General again for ignoring workplace hazards

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is again fining Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC, this time for numerous violations at stores located in Alabama, Florida and Georgia.

For its most recent violations, the discount retailer is facing a penalty of more than $1.6 million, according to OSHA. Since 2017, OSHA has levied more than $9.6 million in penalties, which includes the most recent fines, against Dollar General.

“Once again, our inspectors have found Dollar General stores ignoring federal safety standards and exposing their employees to hazardous working conditions in violation of the law,” Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker said in a release. “We will use our full enforcement powers to hold Dollar General accountable for its ongoing pattern of behavior until they show that they take worker safety seriously.”

In April 2022, OSHA inspected locations in Mobile and Grove Hill, Alabama; Tampa, Florida; and Dewy Rose, Georgia. Those inspections resulted in citations for four willful and 10 repeat violations for failing to “keep receiving and storage areas clean and orderly, and stacking materials in an unsafe manner. These violations exposed workers to hazards associated with slips, trips and being struck-by objects,” according to OSHA.

Following the spring 2022 inspections, the retailer was also cited for exposing workers to fire and entrapment hazards by neglecting to keep exit paths and electrical panels clear and unobstructed. Citations were also issued for failing to mount and label fire extinguishers and for locking exit doors that required a key to open.

According to OSHA, the violations found during its April inspection are similar to those uncovered at other Dollar General stores across the country. During the past 11 months, OSHA has found similar safety hazards at five other Dollar General stores located in the Southeastern U.S.

Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC run more than 18,000 retail locations in 47 states, according to OSHA, which has conducted 182 inspections of the company’s stores since 2017.

While retail might not initially be considered a dangerous trade, it saw the sixth most workplace fatalities during 2020, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

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