Convenience store chain Circle K faces a $16,131 Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fine after a store cashier in Orlando, Florida, suffered a serious gunshot injury, the agency announced August 14.

OSHA inspectors learned that two unidentified men entered the Circle K location on Silver Star Road shortly after 1 a.m. on January 19, 2024; pointed firearms; and screamed at the cashier to open the register. As the employee moved back from the register, one of the assailants fired a shot that struck the employee in the left shoulder.

There’s no federal workplace violence prevention standard; the agency cites employers, usually following employee fatalities or hospitalizations, using its authority under the General Duty Clause (§5(a)(1)) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The agency cited Circle K Stores Inc. with one serious violation for failing to provide a place of employment free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm. Circle K’s fine is the maximum amount allowed by law.

Circle K has contested the citation and penalty before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The commission has sometimes vacated OSHA General Duty Clause citations, calling the agency’s use of the statute’s provision a “gotcha” and “catch-all” for hazards without established standards.

“People employed by late or all-night businesses, such as gas stations, convenience stores, and drive-through fast food restaurants face a high probability of violent incidents as few witnesses, accessible cash, poorly lit stores, and darkened parking areas often attract dangerous thieves,” Erin Sanchez, OSHA’s Orlando area office director, said in an agency statement. “Gratefully, the cashier in this case survived the attack, but not all workers at Circle K and other similar businesses have been as fortunate.”

Out of 79 OSHA investigations of Circle K locations since 2014, five workers suffered fatal gunshot injuries in Alabama in December 2015, Florida in June 2016, and Georgia in September 2019 and at two locations in Texas in December 2018 and August 2021. Most incidents took place in the evening or overnight hours.

Robbery-related assaults and homicides are the leading cause of death for retail workers, according to National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) research. In 2019, NIOSH noted that the rate of deadly workplace violence among convenience store workers was 14 times higher than the overall rate for private industry workers.

According to OSHA, deterrents that keep late-night retail employees safe from workplace violence include the following:

• Interior and exterior security cameras,
• Cash register barriers or enclosures,
• A drop safe or cash management device,
• Proper lighting inside and outside the store, and
• Signage explaining that the register holds $50 or less.

In 2009, OSHA released Recommendations for Workplace Violence Prevention Programs in Late-Night Retail Establishments, employer guidance containing tips on designing and implementing workplace violence prevention programs.

Circle K Stores Inc., based in Tempe, Arizona, is one of the largest convenience store operators in the United States, according to OSHA. Circle K is a subsidiary of Couche-Tard in Quebec, Canada, operating more than 16,700 stores in 29 countries and territories and employing more than 150,000 people.