- Insider spoke with 32 former Family Dollar employees who settled lawsuits with the chain.
- Some workers said they slept in stores during long shifts, and encountered snakes in the break room.
- Former managers said they did not receive overtime pay even for 80-hour weeks.
Former Family Dollar workers who received money from the chain through arbitration have publicly revealed their complaints for the first time.
Insider's Jack Newsham and Peter Coutu spoke with 32 former Family Dollar workers, most of whom received a cash settlement from the firm in arbitration. Family Dollar workers cannot sue the chain because they sign away to their right to benefit from a large-scale lawsuit during onboarding.
Family Dollar workers said they worked so much overtime they slept at the store instead of going home to rest between shifts. One worker said he slept on cardboard boxes piled on a metal cart, and another slept in an office chair during days he did double or triple shifts.
Workers in some stores said they encountered pests like snakes, lizards, and large spiders in break rooms. Others said the company gave them few days off, even in the case of family deaths or injury.
For much of the past year, the US has grappled with a labor crisis as companies struggle to find workers and Americans quit their jobs in record numbers.
Some Family Dollar employees joined scores of other American workers "rage quitting" their jobs this year. A Family Dollar store in Lincoln, Nebraska, shut down in August after every employee quit, citing low pay and long work hours.
The retailer announced a hiring spree for thousands of associates this spring.
Former Family Dollar workers told Insider they received "manager" titles but still performed menial tasks like stocking shelves and working the register. Former managers told Insider they did not receive overtime pay, even for 80-hour weeks. Under US labor laws, employers generally don't need to pay managers overtime.
Rising labor costs were partially responsible for Family Dollar parent company Dollar Tree's decision to raise prices to $1.25 from $1. The announcement signaled the end of true $1-and-under retailers in the US, according to Insider's Mary Hanbury.
The most a former employee told Insider they had been paid was $4,000. Some workers told Insider they did not believe the settlement money was enough to make up for years of poor working conditions.
"Over the years and years and years of me dedicating all those hours that doesn't even put a dent in it," said former Family Dollar worker Temperance Grant, who told Insider her arbitration settlement money equaled about one extra paycheck.