OSHA responded to an employee’s complaint and determined that exit routes were obstructed by stock and equipment. Also, OSHA alleges that an exit route was too narrow for passage, stacked material prevented employees from identifying the nearest exit, access to fire extinguishers was blocked, boxes were stored in unstable tiers eight feet high and workers were not trained in the use of fire extinguishers. Similar violations were cited at other Home Goods stores in 2006 and 2007, leading OSHA to issue five repeat citations for the latest alleged violations. Additional serious citations were issued for a defective fire alarm box, a missing exit sign, electrical hazards and inadequate chemical hazard communication.

[Home Goods, Long Island, NY, Jan. 14, 2010]