99 Cents Only Stores safety record at a glance
99 Cents Only Stores has been the subject of 50 Cal/OSHA inspections in California since 2000, opened between Jul 11, 2001 and Jan 23, 2024. 20 of them were complaint inspections. 44 of them produced citations, 139 in all: 16 serious, 2 repeat. Inspectors proposed $282,073 in penalties; after appeals and settlements the current total is $158,848. The largest single penalty, $28,000, came from an inspection opened Apr 5, 2019 in Livermore. 1 worker death was investigated. That places the employer at #181 of 122,854 California employers in the database by penalties. The same employer has 16 WARN layoff notices on file with the EDD. It also appears in 6 federal wage and hour cases.
Industry as coded by the inspecting office: Retail Trade; Transportation and Warehousing. Worksites in Whittier, Bakersfield, Commerce, San Leandro, Redding, Lemon Grove, Livermore, Riverside.
Every inspection, newest first
Click a date for the citations in that inspection.
| Opened | City | Why | Result | Proposed | Penalty | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2024 | Whittier | Complaint | 2 citations | $1,695 | $1,695 | Dec 27, 2024 |
| Aug 30, 2023 | Bakersfield | Referral | 2 citations | $1,325 | $1,325 | Aug 9, 2024 |
| Nov 2, 2022 | Commerce | Unprogrammed related | no citations | 0 | 0 | Mar 13, 2023 |
| Sep 16, 2022 | San Leandro | Accident | 1 citation | $5,000 | $5,000 | Apr 10, 2023 |
| Apr 13, 2022 | Commerce | Accident | no citations | 0 | 0 | Sep 9, 2022 |
| Dec 20, 2021 | Commerce | Accident | 1 citation | $475 | $475 | May 9, 2022 |
| Sep 9, 2019 | Commerce | Accident | no citations | 0 | 0 | Jan 23, 2020 |
| Jun 19, 2019 | Redding | Referral | 1 citation | $475 | $395 | Sep 3, 2019 |
| May 23, 2019 | Lemon Grove | Accident | 2 citations 1 serious | $39,750 | $9,935 | Jul 27, 2021 |
| Apr 5, 2019 | Livermore | Accident | 4 citations 2 serious | $37,500 | $28,000 | Apr 27, 2020 |
| Feb 12, 2019 | Riverside | Complaint | 4 citations | $5,000 | $2,480 | Jul 2, 2019 |
| Sep 4, 2018 | Los Angeles | Unprogrammed related | 1 citation | $600 | $600 | Jan 7, 2019 |
| Mar 19, 2018 | West Hollywood | Complaint | 1 citation | $185 | $185 | Jul 27, 2018 |
| Nov 17, 2017 | Chico | Complaint | 1 citation | $525 | $350 | May 3, 2018 |
| Jun 14, 2017 | Los Angeles | Complaint | 1 citation | $185 | $185 | Oct 24, 2017 |
| Feb 15, 2017 | Commerce | Accident | no citations | 0 | 0 | Aug 2, 2017 |
| Jan 17, 2017 | Commerce | Accident | 2 citations | $1,050 | $1,050 | Nov 14, 2017 |
| Jan 12, 2017 | Anaheim | Complaint | 3 citations | $1,120 | $1,120 | Dec 4, 2017 |
| Mar 22, 2016 | Garden Grove | Complaint | 7 citations | $2,055 | $900 | Aug 3, 2017 |
| Dec 9, 2015 | Commerce | Unprogrammed related | 4 citations 1 repeat | $5,600 | $1,625 | Aug 16, 2017 |
| Oct 28, 2015 | Commerce | Unprogrammed related | 1 citation | $600 | $600 | Dec 8, 2015 |
| Sep 30, 2015 | Lake Forest | Complaint | 3 citations | $555 | $555 | Oct 29, 2018 |
| Sep 18, 2015 | Calexico | Referral | 8 citations | $3,213 | $3,213 | Sep 4, 2018 |
| Sep 3, 2015 | Commerce | Accident | 2 citations | $1,685 | $1,200 | Aug 16, 2017 |
| Jun 16, 2015 | Yucca Valley | Complaint | 6 citations | $34,495 | $9,625 | Mar 22, 2016 |
| May 13, 2015 | Chico | Complaint | 3 citations | $1,680 | $1,010 | Nov 24, 2015 |
| Dec 29, 2014 | Oakland | Complaint | 4 citations 1 repeat | $3,750 | $2,805 | Apr 24, 2015 |
| Jul 30, 2014 | Commerce | Accident | 1 citation | $700 | $700 | Sep 30, 2014 |
| Apr 15, 2014 | Commerce | Unprogrammed related | 2 citations | $1,400 | $1,400 | Jan 2, 2015 |
| Jan 29, 2014 | Alhambra | Accident | 2 citations 2 serious | $24,750 | $18,675 | Jan 13, 2015 |
| Jul 24, 2013 | Turlock | Complaint | 3 citations | $825 | $825 | Jul 15, 2015 |
| Aug 7, 2012 | Concord | Complaint | 1 citation 1 serious | $7,650 | $3,825 | May 3, 2013 |
| Sep 30, 2010 | Oakland | Complaint | 13 citations 1 serious | $16,100 | $5,025 | Oct 18, 2012 |
| Aug 6, 2010 | Commerce | Accident | no citations | 0 | 0 | Jan 24, 2011 |
| Dec 22, 2009 | Sacramento | Complaint | 1 citation | $420 | $420 | Sep 20, 2010 |
| Feb 5, 2009 | Brea | Complaint | 2 citations | $560 | $150 | Feb 9, 2010 |
| Nov 26, 2008 | Commerce | Accident | 5 citations | $3,000 | $1,785 | Aug 24, 2009 |
| Aug 5, 2008 | Commerce | Accident | 2 citations | $5,935 | $1,450 | Aug 24, 2009 |
| Apr 23, 2007 | Commerce | Complaint | 3 citations | $2,760 | $700 | Feb 10, 2008 |
| Nov 8, 2005 | Commerce | Accident | death 3 citations 1 serious | $5,620 | $4,870 | Dec 3, 2008 |
| Sep 26, 2005 | Commerce | Unprogrammed related | no citations | 0 | 0 | Oct 31, 2005 |
| Jun 23, 2005 | Commerce | Follow-up | 2 citations 1 serious | $8,435 | $3,035 | May 7, 2008 |
| Feb 18, 2004 | Ventura | Complaint | 3 citations | $745 | $745 | Mar 18, 2008 |
| Jul 25, 2003 | Commerce | Accident | 3 citations 2 serious | $16,810 | $16,810 | Sep 13, 2010 |
| May 1, 2003 | Commerce | Follow-up | 2 citations 2 serious | $10,120 | $10,120 | Jun 20, 2006 |
| Jun 27, 2002 | Commerce | Accident | 5 citations | $7,120 | $1,685 | Oct 15, 2002 |
| Aug 22, 2001 | Commerce | Accident | 5 citations | $2,435 | $1,350 | Jun 10, 2003 |
| Aug 20, 2001 | Los Angeles | Complaint | 7 citations 1 serious | $7,865 | $3,900 | Jan 30, 2002 |
| Aug 9, 2001 | Commerce | Accident | 2 citations | $1,310 | $900 | Sep 27, 2006 |
| Jul 11, 2001 | Commerce | Complaint | 8 citations 2 serious | $8,995 | $6,150 | Jun 23, 2004 |
Also recorded as: 99 Cents Only Stores LLC; 99 Cents Only Stores, Inc; 99 Cents Only Stores, LLC.
The rules this employer was cited under
- 8 CCR 3203, Injury and Illness Prevention Program: 22 citations, 1 serious, $25,003
- 8 CCR 3650, Industrial trucks, operating rules: 10 citations, $5,395
- 8 CCR 3668, Powered industrial trucks, training: 9 citations, $3,230
- 8 CCR 3272: 6 citations, $2,965
- 8 CCR 3241, Live loads: 5 citations, 3 serious, $29,450
- 8 CCR 342, Reporting serious injuries and deaths: 5 citations, $16,150
- 8 CCR 5142: 5 citations, $1,470
- 8 CCR 2340.16, Electrical work space: 5 citations, $1,250
Accidents investigated
Local pages: Whittier employment lawyer, Bakersfield employment lawyer.
How to read this record
Each row is one inspection by Cal/OSHA (or, rarely, federal OSHA) of one worksite. Why is the reason it was opened. Proposed is the penalty the inspector assessed; penalty is the current figure after any appeal or settlement. "Serious" means a realistic possibility of death or serious harm; "willful" and "repeat" carry penalties up to $162,851 each.
Citations document that the employer was told, in writing, what the rule required and when. That knowledge is often the center of a retaliation case: a worker who complained about the hazard an inspector later cited, and was then fired or cut, has a Labor Code 6310 claim, with lost wages and attorney's fees.
Full explainer: how to read a Cal/OSHA record.
If you work, or worked, at 99 Cents Only Stores
Write down what you reported, to whom and when, and what changed afterward: shifts, pay, duties, write-ups. Request the inspection file from the Cal/OSHA district office using the activity number on the inspection page. An injury goes through workers' compensation; a firing, demotion or threat after a safety complaint or injury report is an employment claim with a one-year deadline at the Labor Commissioner (Labor Code 6310) and a longer one in court. Free, confidential review: (800) 371-3088 or send what you have.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor OSHA enforcement data, California inspections. Record last checked Nov 1, 2026. Back to the safety tracker.
About this data: Records come from the U.S. Department of Labor's OSHA enforcement datasets (inspection, violation, accident and accident injury tables), which carry Cal/OSHA's state-plan inspections alongside federal ones. We load every inspection of a California worksite opened since January 1, 2000 and refresh it weekly. Employer names, addresses and industry codes are as the inspecting office recorded them; similar names are grouped where they clearly refer to the same employer. A citation can be reduced, vacated or withdrawn on appeal, and an inspection can stay open for months, so a record can change. Penalties shown as "current" reflect the latest status in the federal file. This page is public information about the employer's regulatory record, not legal advice and not a statement that any person was harmed or any law broken beyond what the record states.