Dive Brief:
- Dollar General has agreed to pay a $12 million fine and to implement workplace safety improvements at its stores to settle violations brought by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Thursday.
- OSHA said the settlement resolves investigations involving repeated unsafe storage practices that blocked access to emergency exits, electrical panels and fire extinguishers. OSHA had also cited Dollar General for storing merchandise in a haphazard way, which risked injuries from falling items.
- Going forward, the retailer must resolve these types of hazards within 48 hours or face fines of $100,000 per day of violation — up to $500,000 maximum. As part of the settlement, Dollar General must also significantly reduce in-store inventory and improve stock efficiency to prevent unsafe conditions from recurring.
Dive Insight:
Dollar General’s settlement with OSHA appears to signal an about-face for the company.
The retailer has faced repeated federal and state safety violations in recent years and the company’s reticence to address the safety concerns led OSHA to place Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program. Companies assigned to the program “have demonstrated indifference” through repeated or willful violations of OSHA policies, according to the agency.
From Jan. 1, 2017 through July 7, 2024, OSHA assessed the company over $26 million in proposed safety-related penalties, an agency spokesperson told Retail Dive in a Friday email. “Dollar General has also paid separate penalty amounts for earlier cases not covered by this agreement,” OSHA said. The settlement requires payment of $12 million 60 days from Thursday, which is the date OSHA and Dollar General signed the settlement agreement.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with OSHA to resolve these matters,” Dollar General said in a statement to Retail Dive. “We remain committed to ensuring a safe working environment for our employees and a pleasant shopping experience for our customers.”
Dollar General, which opened its 20,000th store earlier this year, must monitor the results of actions required under the settlement and report them to OSHA quarterly for the next two years as part of the agreement. The company must also hire additional safety managers and establish a safety and health committee that includes employees.
The retailer also has established a hotline and placed signs in stores with a phone number and a QR code that enable employees and customers to anonymously report safety-related concerns.
Additionally, the agreement between OSHA and Dollar General requires the Tennessee-based retailer to retain a third-party consultant to identify hazards. The company must hire a third-party auditor to perform unannounced annual safety audits. Dollar General has also established a new safety operations center to identify in-store hazards and support safety performance. The company’s PopShelf stores are excluded from the settlement.
“This agreement commits Dollar General to making worker safety a priority by implementing significant and systematic changes in its operations to improve accountability and compliance, and it gives Dollar General employees essential input on ensuring their own health and safety,” Douglas Parker, an assistant secretary for occupational safety and health, said in a statement. “These changes help give peace of mind to thousands of workers, knowing that they are not risking their safety in their workplaces and that they will come home healthy at the end of each day.”
Dollar General in May reported that its Q1 net sales rose 6.1% year over year to nearly $10 billion and same-store sales rose 2.4% during the period. The retailer said it plans to open over 700 new stores and remodel 1,620 locations before the end of this year.
