Family Dollar class action claims workers exposed to unsanitary conditions at distribution center

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Family Dollar unsanitary distribution center class action overview: 

• Who: Family Dollar is being sued by employees in a West Memphis, Arkansas, distribution center linked to a major Family Dollar recall
• Why: The employees say they were forced to work in unsanitary, rat infested conditions
• Where: Arkansas federal court

Family Dollar had its employees work for years in a rat-infested, unsanitary distribution center later temporarily closed by health inspectors, a new class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiffs Randy Washington, Linda Price, Davisha Silas, David Martinez, and Sequoria Grady filed the class action lawsuit against Family Dollar Stores, Inc. June 6 in an Arkansas federal court, alleging gross negligence. 

The plaintiffs are looking to represent all West Memphis Family Dollar Distribution Center hourly employees who worked at the center in the last three years.

The plaintiffs accuse the company of “knowingly exposing its own workers to a long-lasting and massive rodent infestation and other unsanitary conditions at its West Memphis, Arkansas distribution center.”

Health inspectors shut down distribution center

The plaintiffs say health inspectors came to the center multiple times in 2021, where they found significant rodent activity where food was stored. 

In 2022, the center was inspected by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). That inspection found the center was still infested with rodents, both alive and dead and in various states of decay. The inspection led to a major Family Dollar recall and the temporary closure of dozens of Family Dollar stores. 

The plaintiffs say the company knew about the unsanitary conditions, but continued to let its employees work there. 

“During this time, Family Dollar made significant profits, while knowingly exposing Arkansas employees to potentially hazardous or contaminated products by allowing and failing to prevent long-lasting and massive rodent infestations and other unsanitary conditions at its West Memphis Distribution Center,” the employees said.

“Likewise, many Family Dollar stores throughout the country have been forced to close due to rodent infestations in the recent past. Together, these facts demonstrate a much larger and troubling pattern of willful and intentional neglect by Family Dollar that compromise the health, safety, and well-being of Arkansas employees.”

They are seeking certification of the class action, damages, interest, fees, costs and a jury trial.

The lawsuit comes after Family Dollar was hit with a class action in February by consumers who said the company knowingly sold products potentially contaminated by a massive rat infestation at one of its warehouses, which closed more than 400 stores in six states when it came to light.

What do you think about Family Dollar’s delay in recalling and closing stores amid the infestation? Let us know in the comments. 

The plaintiffs are represented by Chris W. Burks of WH Law PLLC.

The Family Dollar unsanitary distribution center class action lawsuit is Randy Washington, et al., v. Family Dollar Stores Inc., Case No. 2:22-cv-00101-KGB in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas.

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