Greenback Common violates office security requirements once more
The outside of a Greenback Common comfort retailer is seen on March 16, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Brandon Bell | Getty Pictures
Greenback Common has once more been present in violation of federal office security rules for “willfully exposing” workers to fireside hazards at a Pennsylvania retailer, the Division of Labor mentioned Friday.
Investigators discovered “harmful security hazards,” together with blocked emergency exit routes and electrical panels, at a Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, retailer throughout a November inspection that was sparked by a criticism made to the Occupational Security and Well being Administration.
The hazards had been much like violations discovered at different shops operated by the discounter all through the U.S., and the inspection is one among greater than 180 investigations through which OSHA has discovered Greenback Common to be jeopardizing employee security, the DOL mentioned.
In response, a Greenback Common spokesperson advised CNBC they “often evaluation and refine our security applications, and reinforce them by coaching, ongoing communication, recognition and accountability.”
“Once we be taught of conditions the place we have now did not dwell as much as this dedication, we work to well timed deal with the problem and be certain that the corporate’s expectations relating to security are clearly communicated, understood and carried out,” the spokesperson added.
The corporate, which operates roughly 18,000 shops throughout the nation and employs greater than 150,000 staff, has been fined $15 million for security violations since 2017 and “continues to defy federal office security necessities” regardless of repeated penalties, the company mentioned.
“Exposing workers to those hazards might be harmful, particularly in an emergency,” OSHA Space Director Mary Reynolds mentioned in an announcement. “Greenback Common Corp. has a considerable historical past of the identical violations and hazards discovered at shops throughout the U.S. They need to finish their repeated failures to right these violations earlier than an emergency turns tragic.”
Simply final week, OSHA mentioned Greenback Common was in settlement talks with federal regulators after the retailer was labeled a “extreme violator” of office security guidelines. Greenback Common was the primary firm to be added to the “extreme violators” checklist final fall after OSHA expanded the attain of one among its longstanding security enforcement applications.
For the problems on the Pennsylvania retailer, OSHA issued a quotation for one willful violation and one repeat violation with $245,544 in proposed penalties, however the fines are unlikely to have a significant influence on the retailer’s steadiness sheet.
In fiscal 2022, which ended Feb. 3, Greenback Common reported $37.84 billion in gross sales and a internet earnings of $2.41 billion.
The corporate has 15 enterprise days to both pay the fines, request an off-the-cuff convention with OSHA’s space director or contest the findings earlier than the unbiased Occupational Security and Well being Overview Fee.
