Soon after U.S. Department of Labor workplace safety inspectors arrived at a Family Dollar store in southeast Van Zandt County in December 2022, they found the store's operator allowing merchandise to block storeroom exits and walkways, stacking boxes at unsafe heights and failing to ensure quick access to fire extinguishers.

The department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to Family Dollar Stores of Texas LLC, a subsidiary of Dollar Tree Inc., for three repeat violations and proposed $294,657 in penalties. The findings in this inspection are similar to those OSHA cited at a Dollar Tree store in Mount Pleasant in September 2022 that led to $254,478 in proposed penalties.

Since 2017, OSHA has issued citations to Dollar Tree Inc. for violations in more than 500 inspections at Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores in the U.S. In all, OSHA has identified more than 300 violations at stores operated by one of the nation's largest discount retailers.

"The hazards we find at Dollar Tree stores has become a recurring theme," said OSHA Regional Administrator Eric S. Harbin in Dallas. "The safety conditions that exist at some of these stores create the potential for tragic consequences in an emergency. Dollar Tree Inc. has a legal obligation to provide workers with a safe and healthful workplace by making certain exits and walkways are never blocked."

Based in Chesapeake, Virginia, Dollar Tree Inc. operates more than 16,000 Dollar Tree and Family Dollar locations in 48 states and five Canadian provinces. The company also has a nationwide logistics network and has more than 193,000 employees. The publicly traded company reported a gross profit of $7.7 billion in 2021.

Dollar Tree Inc. 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.

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