There are ONLY hours left before Dollar General is forced to hand over millions of dollars to the Department of Labor.
As part of a workplace settlement with the Department of Labor, the discount retailer agreed to pay $12 million, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced.
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) gave the network two days to fix specific safety risks.
On Thursday, the agency tasked with overseeing workplaces gave Dollar General just 48 hours to fix blocked exits, improper access to fire extinguishers and electrical panels, and inadequate storage of materials.
Failure to make changes within two days would result in daily fines of US$100,000, with a maximum of US$500,000.
Stores located in remote locations may be forced to close temporarily until issues are resolved.
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To help meet safety standards, Dollar General agreed to hire a third-party consultant to identify safety risks in the store.
The store agreed to reduce inventory, which often crowds the aisles, and to hire more security managers.
“This agreement commits Dollar General to making worker safety a priority by implementing significant and systematic changes to its operations to improve accountability and compliance, and provides Dollar General employees with essential information to ensure their own health and safety.” , OSHA Assistant Secretary Douglas L. Parker said in a press release.
“These changes help give thousands of workers peace of mind, knowing that they are not risking their safety in their workplace and that they will return home healthy at the end of each day,” he continued.
A Dollar General spokesperson previously told The US Sun that they were “pleased to have reached an agreement.”
“We remain committed to ensuring a safe work environment for our employees and a pleasant shopping experience for our customers,” they said.
The company has faced fines from OSHA since 2017.
Over the past seven years, the dollar store chain has racked up a shocking $21 million in workplace safety fines.
The safety agency found 111 cases of Dollar General violating basic workplace safety standards.
Last year, OSHA found the store to be a “serious violator” of workplace safety rules.
“What we have found repeatedly at Dollar General stores is that there are obvious, preventable hazards that put workers at risk,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Douglas L. Parker. The New York Times last year.
“When we become aware of situations in which we have not fulfilled this commitment,” the company responded.
“We work to resolve the issue in a timely manner and ensure that the company’s expectations regarding security are clearly communicated, understood and implemented.”
Despite the five-year period in which OSHA reported safety violations committed by the retailer, Dollar General’s stock has only grown, The New York Times reported.
“I’m glad OSHA isn’t waiting for a tragedy to occur to document these hazards,” Joseph McCartin, a labor historian at Georgetown University, told The New York Times.
“But at the same time, what is being revealed by the numerous OSHA inspections and the rising fees is that Dollar General doesn’t care.”
Dollar General currently employs about 170,000 people, according to Statist.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
