A federal review of the company’s records found that more than 2,300 rodents were found in 2021, “demonstrating a history of infection.” (Daniel Acker, Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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WEST MEPHIS, Arkansas — Conditions described by the Food and Drug Administration at the Family Dollar warehouse in West Memphis, Arkansas, were appalling.
“Live rodents, dead rodents in varying degrees of decomposition, rodent faeces and urine, rodent tracks, nest and rodent odors throughout the facility, dead birds and bird droppings.” Putrid stench, odors and secretions “too many to count.”
A federal review of the company’s records found that more than 2,300 rodents were found in 2021, “demonstrating a history of infection.”
“No one should be exposed to products stored in unacceptable conditions that we found at this Family Dollar Distribution Center,” Judith McMeekin, FDA Assistant Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs, said in a statement.
The FDA’s discovery prompted Family Dollar to voluntarily recall dozens of food, cosmetics, drugs and other items and temporarily close more than 400 stores across six southern states.
But the picture of a distribution center that sends groceries to stores didn’t come as a shock to many in Memphis, where Family Dollar has temporarily closed its more than 60 stores clustered in predominantly black and low-income neighborhoods in the city. The closure has left residents with a gap in access to food and basic necessities.
The conditions are part of what the city describes as Family Dollar’s history of neglecting the health and safety concerns of its customers and employees in Memphis. Some community leaders have revived calls for a boycott of the network.
Most of these stores’ customers are low-income blacks who do not have good transportation to get to other places. They need the same quality and security as everyone else.
– Rev. Leonard Dawson
The distribution center in West Memphis wasn’t the only Family Dollar to be infested with rodents in recent years. Family Dollar stores in Las Vegas, Sacramento, Richmond, Miami Gardens, Pittsburgh, Canton, New York and other areas have been forced to close over the past few years due to rodent infestations.
Some experts say the issues point to wider neglect at Dollar Tree, the parent company of Family Dollar, which acquired the chain in 2015 and has a long history of safety violations.
A company spokesman said in a statement that the company is committed to producing quality products and creating a safe environment for customers and employees.
Dollar Tree said the most effective way to recall affected products was to temporarily close stores that received supplies from the distribution center. The distribution center is back open and operating with limited capacity, and the company is gradually reopening Family Dollar stores.
The company is “taking this situation very seriously” and is cooperating with regulators and “in the process of resolving the issue,” a spokesman said.
“They don’t treat us like family”
The Family Dollar State, which has about 8,000 stores in the US, is of particular importance in Memphis due to the limited retail opportunities available to shoppers in the city who are poor and do not have easy access to cars or public transportation.
“I don’t think that would have happened in a wealthy neighborhood,” said Vicki Terry, executive director of the NAACP’s Memphis chapter. “I don’t think things would get that bad.” The NAACP is giving away free $150 gift cards to shoppers who have purchased unsafe items from Family Dollar and are trying to find other options.
The household dollar is a lifeline for many in a city where more than a quarter of residents live below the poverty line. In some areas, Family Dollar is the only nearby store where shoppers can buy groceries – albeit with a small selection of fresh produce – and everyday items.
“Most of the customers in these stores are low-income blacks who don’t have good transportation to get to other places,” said Rev. Leonard Dawson. “They want the same quality and security as everyone else.”
They don’t treat us like family, but they want our dollars.
– Patrick Rogers, social activist
A group of Memphis church leaders, community activists, and other city and county officials have been fighting to improve conditions at Family Dollar since 2019.
That same year, Dawson, other pastors, and local leaders protested the Family Dollar over litter, boxes and trash piled up outside stores, rodents, shelf clutter, and other issues.
County health officials then ordered at least one Family Dollar store to close due to unsanitary conditions, including rats in the store. According to news reports, Family Dollar stores have been repeatedly cited by the county’s environmental court for quality-of-life violations such as garbage accumulation.
Local officials in Memphis met with Family Dollar representatives at the time, and company officials promised to improve the situation.
Community activist Patricka Rogers, who led efforts to pressure the Family Dollar through actions such as posting photos of the stores in disarray on her Facebook page, said the situation briefly improved following the pledges.
But they quickly deteriorated again.
“This is how they do business in our community,” she said. “They don’t treat us like family, but they need our dollars.”
The company did not respond to conditions at Memphis stores or complaints from city officials.
History of violations
Family Dollar’s parent company, Dollar Tree, also has a history of workplace violations.
In 2021, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration said that Dollar Tree inspections over the previous five years resulted in over $9.3 million in fines.
Dollar Tree has “a history of not taking the safety of its workers and customers seriously,” Danelle Jindra, an OSHA spokesperson for Florida, said last year.
David Michaels, a former OSHA administrator from 2009 to 2017, said in an interview that agency inspectors found stores were often understaffed and lacked storage space to store goods. The crates piled up in back rooms and blocked the exits, creating a “fire trap,” he said.
A spokesman for the company stated that the company is “committed to complying with all applicable federal, state and local health and safety laws and relevant industry standards.”
Some of the conditions stem from the company’s labor model, which is based on understaffed stores and low overheads, said Scott Mushkin, retail analyst at R5 Capital.
Analysts say the company pays some of the lowest wages in retail and is more vulnerable to employee turnover and hiring problems in tough job markets like the current one.
The Family Dollar stores were in a state of disrepair when Dollar Tree acquired the business in 2015, he said. While Family Dollar has renovated thousands of stores in recent years, many of them are still in disrepair.
“Business controls don’t seem to be where they should be.”
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Nathaniel Meyerson Business