OCONTO FALLS, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A federal inspection of the Oconto Falls Dollar General found safety violations, OSHA says.
In December 2022, inspectors found stacks of merchandise and rolling containers blocking many exit routes, including a storeroom emergency exit. They also found boxes in storage in danger of falling on employees and unsafe electrical boxes and cords and cables used improperly.
OSHA issued a citation for three repeated safety violations to the store’s operator, DolGen Midwest LLC — a company subsidiary — and proposed penalties of $257,829.
A Waller, Texas store was also issued similar citations.
Federal officials say there appears to be a pattern with Dollar General stores.
“Once again, federal workplace safety inspectors have found Dollar General ignoring required safety measures and allowing blocked emergency exits and walkways that endanger everyone who works and shops at stores where these violations exist,” explained OSHA Regional Administrator Eric S. Harbin in Dallas. “Seconds lost trying to move boxes to reach a fire extinguisher or get out a safety exit can be the difference between life and death in an emergency. Allowing unsafe conditions like these to exist is a tragedy waiting to happen.”
Dollar General has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
These hazards and the proposed penalties now have the Tennessee-based, Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC facing more than $16 million in fines since 2017 after nearly 200 inspections.
