Ex-Dollar General Employee Warns Shoppers About Dangerous Store Conditions

Dollar General has previously come under fire for certain store conditions.

Concerns about the condition of Dollar General's stores have been mounting for awhile now. Last year, the discount retailer was forced to close certain locations because of hazardous conditions. In July 2022, Dollar General was ordered by officials to shutter two stores in Euclid, Ohio, due to "critical safety issues" that included blocked aisles, lack of access to electrical panels, and inaccessible fire extinguishers.

Then in November, locations in Granite Shoals, Texas, and Warrick County, Indiana, were also closed to shoppers for similar problems. One of the Granite Shoals Dollar Generals had violated International Fire Code with "cluttered aisles, obstructed exits, expired fire extinguishers, and unmarked chemicals," while a Warrick County Dollar General was cited for "unsanitary conditions."

But now, a former worker just opened up about about another issue in the discount retailer's stores.

An ex-employee is now warning shoppers about rodents.

Cluttered aisles and unusable fire extinguishers are certainly a concern. But a former Dollar General employee named Savannah Beneventi is now warning shoppers about another issue she encountered while working at one store: rodents. In a March 19 video posted to her TikTok account @highspeedfan, Beneventi shared her "most unhinged moments" working at Dollar General.

"So one of the major problems about working at Dollar General aside from the customers and horrible management were the rats," she said in the video while showing photos of rodent droppings and urine on boxes. "We were being forced to stock the kiosk candy that was just covered in rat [urine]. They carry diseases, like hello!"

Beneventi, who refers to herself as a "serial job hopper," said it got to the point where she would often refuse to stock products because of the rodents, despite warnings from management. "When I signed up for [this job], I didn't know that there was going to be rats everywhere so I was like I'm not doing this," she said. "Maybe call an exterminator like I don't know what to tell you, I'm not touching any of this."

Other workers shared their experience at Dollar General.

It appears this wasn't an isolated issue at the location Beneventi worked at. In the comment section of her TikTok video, others chimed in with similar experiences. "I used to work at Dollar General," one user replied. "And oh my gosh, the mice was sooo bad. The smell would knock you down." Another wrote, "Ex-Dollar General employee, can confirm. Horrible work place."

Best Life has reached out to Dollar General about these claims, and we will update this story with their response.

Another major retailer has also faced problems with rodents.

Dollar General is not the only discount retailer who has come under fire for this disturbing problem. A Family Dollar distribution center in West Memphis, Arkansas, was notably shut down last year because of a rat infestation. After a FDA investigation at the center revealed more than 1,000 rodents and animal droppings in "areas where human food is routinely stored," the discount retailer had to temporary close more than 400 stores throughout six states and recall certain products shipped from the facility to locations. And then a few months afterwards, Family Dollar also chose to close the West Memphis facility permanently in light of the overwhelming rodent problem.

Rodents can pose a major risk to the health of shoppers. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains, rats and mice have the ability to carry many different diseases that can spread to people who eat food contaminated by an infected rodent. "Food products that have been exposed to filth, like rats, mice, and other rodents, can make you or your family members sick," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns.