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We rely on our local dollar stores for everyday necessities at a low cost, with millions of Americans flocking to their local Family Dollar. The company has been providing products to communities throughout the U.S. for more than 60 years now. But despite all the help Family Dollar has offered shoppers for decades, the dollar store chain has been embroiled in a significant controversy recently, resulting in a federal investigation and a major lawsuit. Now, Family Dollar is getting rid of something permanently as a result. Read on to find out what the company is doing now.

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On Feb. 18, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revealed that it had been investigating a Family Dollar distribution facility in West Memphis, Arkansas, since January because of a consumer complaint. According to the agency, its inspection revealed a number of unsafe and unsanitary conditions, including a major rodent infestation.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb

"Secara khusus,during this inspection we observed rodent evidence, including live rodents, dead rodents of various states of decay, rodent excreta pellets (REPs), gnawings, nesting, and odors indicative of rodents throughout the entirety of your facility including areas where human food is routinely stored," the FDA wrote in a report issued to the facility.

That same month, Family Dollar issued a voluntary recall for specific products shipped by the facility to more than 400 stores throughout six states and temporarily closed these locations to help carry out the recall. But the company started gradually reopening those stores in late February, and its distribution facility was also reopened then—although the center was "operating at a limited capacity" and "working on a remediation plan," according to Insider.

Following the investigation, Family Dollar has now decided to shut down the distribution center entirely, The Hill reported. On May 18, the company told employees that it will be closing its facility in West Memphis permanently. According to a letter sent from Family Dollar to West Memphis Mayor Marco McClendon, the center will shutter on or around July 17. Randy Guiler, the vice president of investor relations for Dollar Tree, Family Dollar's parent company, told the New York Postthat the center will continue shipping to stores until the end of June, and then it will transfer its inventory to other distribution centers.

"Like most companies, we regularly assess our operational footprint to ensure we are running our business in the most effective and responsible way. As a result of that process, we determined the nearly 30-year-old facility in West Memphis would not be adequate to allow us to continue serving the needs and requirements of our stores and customers served by the distribution center," Guiler said in a statement.

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The announcement of the facility closure comes just weeks after the state of Arkansas filed a lawsuit against Family Dollar and Dollar Tree. Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledgefiled the suit on April 28, claiming that Family Dollar had been aware of the rodent infestation at least two years before the FDA investigation and knowingly sold potentially contaminated products to shoppers.

According to the lawsuit, the companies demonstrated a "troubling pattern of willful and intentional neglect and deceptive and unconscionable business practices." But despite Rutledge calling for an official withdrawal of the company's authorization to conduct business in the state, the attorney general spoke out against Family Dollar's decision to shut down the center instead of fixing its problems.

"Family Dollar is punishing hundreds of hardworking Arkansas families instead of cleaning up the company's own, illegal business practices that put their employees and consumers at risk," Rutledge said in a May 18 statement to the New York Post. "Family Dollar should eliminate deceptive and dangerous conduct."

McClendon mengatakan bahwa Dolar Keluarga adalah salah satu pengusaha terbesar di kota itu, membuat shutdown mengejutkan dan membuat frustrasi. "Kami menjangkau dan kami menawarkan sumber daya apa pun yang kami bisa ... kami bahkan menjangkau dengan departemen pengendalian hewan kami atau layanan apa pun yang kami rasa dapat diakses oleh mereka ... sehingga keputusan ini tidak akan terjadi tetapi sejujurnya itu tampak seperti hal ini ada di dalamnya Menghasilkan gugatan dari negara bagian dari negara bagian itu, "katanya kepada bukit.

Ketika pusat secara resmi ditutup pada bulan Juli, 230 karyawan akan dilepaskan dari perusahaan, The Hill melaporkan. Kemudian 90 karyawan lainnya akan dipisahkan dari perusahaan pada 15 Oktober sebagai hasil dari shutdown. Tetapi menurut Guiler, karyawan yang memenuhi syarat akan menerima paket pesangon dari dolar keluarga.

"Ini adalah keputusan yang sulit kami tidak menganggap enteng, terutama karena tim kami yang luar biasa di Memphis Barat, hubungan kami dengan masyarakat, dan kemitraan yang kami miliki dengan Negara Bagian Arkansas sejak 1994," katanya. "Kami berkomitmen untuk memperlakukan rekanan yang terkena dampak secara adil dan hormat, dan kami melakukan segala yang kami bisa untuk mendukung mereka dengan transisi mereka, termasuk memberikan rencana pesangon kepada mereka yang memenuhi syarat, serta menawarkan layanan penempatan dan program bantuan karyawan."

Baca ini selanjutnya:Pohon dolar mendapat kecaman besar ini.