Forever 21 Faces $55,000 in OSHA Fines
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Los Angeles–based retail chain Forever 21 with two alleged violations of workplace-safety standards after an inspection was conducted at the company’s Burlington, Mass., store.
The retail company faces up to a total of $55,000 in fines for exposing workers to “struck-by” and “exit-access hazards” violations following an inspection held in late 2012 by OSHA’s office in Andover, Mass.
The back room of the Burlington Forever 21 had piles of boxes of unsecured merchandise, and the store’s emergency exit route was blocked by boxes of stock.
According to OSHA, a repeat violation is when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.
In 2011 OSHA cited Forever 21 for similar hazards at its Bridgewater, N.J., store.
“Improper storage of stock and inadequate exit routes can, and do, put workers at risk of serious and severe injury,” said Jeffrey A. Erskine, OSHA’s area director for Middlesex and Essex counties in Massachusetts. “Particularly disturbing is that these same hazards were previously found at another Forever 21 store. An employer with multiple locations, such as Forever 21, must ensure that safe and healthful working conditions are maintained at all its workplaces.”
Forever 21 has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, meet with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.—Sarah Wolfson
