public company

Dollar General

Industry Retail

A public discount retailer selling groceries, household goods, consumables, and basic merchandise through a dense network of small stores. Dollar General offers low-price access but has severe worker-safety, pricing, and community-retail concerns.

Why this matters: Discount stores are ordinary shopping infrastructure for low-income and rural customers, so their labor and safety record matters directly.

Letter grade F Malignant Medium confidence (AI) Rubric gcd-rubric-v1 Last reviewed May 11, 2026

Final Score -8* F - Malignant

FMALIGNANT-8 pts

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

Base Material6

Bonus+0

Cap35Ownership <= 2 and Governance <= 2

After Cap6

Penalties-14

Private Government badge

Dollar General receives the Private Government badge because it combines large-scale private rule-setting over customers, workers, users, members, or counterparties with OpenLobby-documented lobbying of about $768K on public policy issues.

Evidence: [10]

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Evaluation Overview

F - Malignant

The score turns mainly on Product Integrity, with the largest penalty coming from Human Harm.

Strengths

Product Integrity2/5
Ownership1/10
Governance1/10

Penalties

Human Harm-6
Policy Capture-4
Accountability Opacity-2
Ecological Harm-1

Evidence state

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)
ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)
Linked claims10
Direct axis claims9
Coverage9/14

Scoring Axes

Axis	Score	Why this score
Ownership ? Control rights: shareholder-dominated at 0, worker cooperative control at 10.	1 / 10	Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. That keeps Dollar General low on Ownership: decisive control remains with shareholders, private owners, executives, or state insiders rather than affected people. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1]
Governance ? Binding decision authority: centralized control at 0, democratic stakeholder control at 10.	1 / 10	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Linked evidence context Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2] context Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1] context OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3] context Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4] context Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5] context Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]
Extraction ? Surplus allocation, wage share, CEO pay ratio, margins, and structured extraction judgment.	1 / 10	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. That keeps Dollar General low on Extraction: the business model makes extraction from workers, users, suppliers, customers, or the public central rather than incidental. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence context Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2] context Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1] context OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3] context Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4] context Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5] context Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]
Labor Sovereignty ? Worker power: coercive conditions at 0, co-determination or ownership at 7. Employee dissatisfaction matters only when source-backed evidence shows concrete limits on worker agency, such as coercive scheduling, retaliation, wage theft, harassment, unsafe conditions, suppression of worker voice, or extreme turnover.	0 / 7	OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. That keeps Dollar General low on Labor Sovereignty: labor remains managerially controlled, replaceable, or exposed to coercive employment and contracting conditions. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3]
Solidarity with the Unemployed ? Treatment of exits and nonworkers, including severance, redeployment, and non-competes.	0 / 7	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. That keeps Dollar General low on Solidarity with the Unemployed: the model provides little protection for people who leave, are excluded, or cannot bargain from employment. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence context Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2] context Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1] context OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3] context Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4] context Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5] context Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]
Loss-Bearing Fidelity ? Willingness to absorb costs to preserve values, workers, users, and public obligations.	0 / 7	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. That keeps Dollar General low on Loss-Bearing Fidelity: losses, hazards, or adjustment costs are routinely pushed onto workers, customers, suppliers, communities, or the public. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence context Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2] context Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1] context OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3] context Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4] context Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5] context Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]
Market Conduct ? Pricing fairness, switching costs, lock-in, and rent extraction.	1 / 5	Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. That keeps Dollar General low on Market Conduct: market power, lock-in, coercive pricing, or exclusionary conduct is a major part of the institution's position. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Linked evidence Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5]
Product Integrity ? Preservation of quality rather than degradation for monetization.	2 / 5	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. That places Dollar General in the middle of Product Integrity: the product has real use value but is compromised by incentives, monetization, lock-in, quality degradation, or risk. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2]
Scale Integrity ? Whether growth improves or degrades fairness and accountability.	0 / 5	Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. Linked evidence context Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise. [2] context Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled. [1] context OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment. [3] context Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4] context Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns. [5] context Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]

Penalties

Penalty	Applied	Why this penalty
Human Harm ? Severity, scale, culpability, vulnerable targets, willful reoffense, reputation laundering, pattern escalation, and time decay. Range: -20 to 0.	-6	Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. That warrants a limited Human Harm penalty because ordinary operation, documented misconduct, or institutional power creates serious injury, deprivation, abuse, or foreseeable human damage. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience. [4]
Ecological Harm ? Footprint, trajectory, irreversibility, culpability, and scale, including whether ecological harm is central to the model and continued after credible notice. Range: -30 to 0.	-1	Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: dense discount retail moves high volumes of packaged consumables, household goods, plastics, shipping, and store operations through a conventional low-cost chain. Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: dense discount retail moves high volumes of packaged consumables, household goods, plastics, shipping, and store operations through a conventional low-cost chain. That warrants a limited Ecological Harm penalty because the institution causes or defends ecological damage that is more than incidental to the model. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: dense discount retail moves high volumes of packaged consumables, household goods, plastics, shipping, and store operations through a conventional low-cost chain. [7]
Policy Capture ? Private-interest attempts to bend law, regulation, subsidies, taxes, enforcement, trade, labor, safety, competition, environmental, healthcare, housing, surveillance, civil-liberties, or consumer policy against workers, customers, citizens, affected communities, or ecological life. Public-interest advocacy is not penalized merely because it is lobbying. Range: -15 to 0.	-4	OpenLobby records DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying on agriculture, healthcare, labor, technology, food with about $768K in spending across 16 filings; the reviewed filings document private… OpenLobby records DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying on agriculture, healthcare, labor, technology, food with about $768K in spending across 16 filings; the reviewed filings document private institutional lobbying over public rules rather than a public-interest advocacy role. That warrants a limited Policy Capture penalty because private institutional pressure is being applied to public rules while affected people cannot democratically govern that agenda. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence OpenLobby records DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying on agriculture, healthcare, labor, technology, food with about $768K in spending across 16 filings; the reviewed filings document private institutional lobbying over public rules rather than a public-interest advocacy role. [9]
Toxic Products ? Current sale of products whose ordinary use, exposure, ingredients, residues, packaging, or formulation creates toxic, addictive, or consumer-safety risk. Food products receive at least light scrutiny for artificial colors, artificial flavors, petro-derived additives, pesticide residues, contaminants, endocrine-disrupting packaging, and ultra-processed formulation. Ordinary adult nightlife or alcohol service is not penalized by itself without evidence of predatory marketing, youth targeting, addiction-extractive design, or unusual product-safety misconduct. Range: -5 to 0.	-1	Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty: discount retail includes cleaning chemicals, pesticides, batteries, low-cost plastics, and other household consumables with ordinary toxic or disposal risk. Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty: discount retail includes cleaning chemicals, pesticides, batteries, low-cost plastics, and other household consumables with ordinary toxic or disposal risk. That warrants a limited Toxic Products penalty because ordinary use, exposure, ingredients, residues, packaging, or formulation creates material toxic, addictive, or consumer-safety risk. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty: discount retail includes cleaning chemicals, pesticides, batteries, low-cost plastics, and other household consumables with ordinary toxic or disposal risk. [8]
Accountability Opacity ? Material opacity, reputation laundering, or hidden accountability structures that prevent public accountability. Range: -2 to 0.	-2	Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. That warrants a severe Accountability Opacity penalty because material facts, risks, conflicts, ownership, or accountability information are obscured from the public. The value is near the floor because the conduct appears central, large-scale, repeated, or institutionally powerful rather than incidental. Linked evidence Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers. [6]

Bonus Credits

No bonus credits applied in this version.

Confidence Basis

Confidence is computed from the evidence trail and review state, not typed into the profile by hand.

Medium 74/100

9 verified linked claims 9 direct axis claims 0 disputed claims 9/14 components covered

This confidence label measures the source-backed evidence trail. AI-scaffolded scores remain tentative until human review.

Claim confidence 17/20

9 verified linked claims

Source quality 12/18

Best source per verified claim, weighted by institutional reliability

Direct axis-specific claims 9/18

9 direct claims across 14 active components

Dispute load 12/12

0 disputed claims on this entity

Recency 10/10

Newest accepted timestamp: May 13, 2026

Reviewer status 7/12

Human-reviewed components score higher than AI scaffolding

Component coverage 6/10

9/14 evidence-bearing components have direct support

Evidence State

Profile stateAI draft / human-pending

VerificationUnverified

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)

ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)

Correction routeUse “Challenge this rating” for factual errors, missing counterevidence, source problems, or calculation mistakes.

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Claims and Sources

Claims are the evidence record. Each claim needs a source link, axis category, status, confidence level, and timestamp before it can support a score.

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

1Dollar General is a shareholder-governed public company, so control is investor-centered rather than worker- or community-controlled.

Ownership Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Dollar General investor relationsOfficial self-description · 68%

2Dollar General operates a large discount-store chain selling consumables, household goods, food, and general merchandise.

Product Integrity Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Dollar General websiteGeneral web source · 58%

3OSHA placed Dollar General in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program after repeated serious workplace-safety violations, provides evidence for the relevant scoring judgment.

Labor Sovereignty Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Axios on Dollar General and Dollar Tree safetyGeneral web source · 58%
OSHA Dollar General corporate settlement PDFPrimary public record · 100%

4Repeated blocked-exit, unsafe-storage, and workplace-safety enforcement against Dollar General create direct worker and customer safety risk beyond ordinary retail inconvenience.

Human Harm Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Axios on Dollar General and Dollar Tree safetyGeneral web source · 58%
OSHA Dollar General corporate settlement PDFPrimary public record · 100%

5Dollar General provides low prices and access in underserved areas but can displace fuller-service local retail while operating with severe safety and staffing concerns.

Market Conduct Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Axios on Dollar General and Dollar Tree safetyGeneral web source · 58%

6Repeated safety enforcement and pricing irregularity concerns show that the low-price deal can hide material labor, safety, and customer-cost problems from shoppers.

Accountability Opacity Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Axios on Dollar General and Dollar Tree safetyGeneral web source · 58%

7Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: dense discount retail moves high volumes of packaged consumables, household goods, plastics, shipping, and store operations through a conventional low-cost chain.

Ecological Harm Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Dollar General websiteGeneral web source · 58%

8Dollar General retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty: discount retail includes cleaning chemicals, pesticides, batteries, low-cost plastics, and other household consumables with ordinary toxic or disposal risk.

Toxic Products Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

Dollar General websiteGeneral web source · 58%

9OpenLobby records DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying on agriculture, healthcare, labor, technology, food with about $768K in spending across 16 filings; the reviewed filings document private institutional lobbying over public rules rather than a public-interest advocacy role.

Policy Capture Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

OpenLobby — DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying profileGeneral web source · 58%

10Dollar General receives the Private Government badge because it combines large-scale private rule-setting over customers, workers, users, members, or counterparties with OpenLobby-documented lobbying of about $768K on public policy issues.

Private Government Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 11, 2026

AI scaffold

OpenLobby — DOLLAR GENERAL lobbying profileGeneral web source · 58%

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Competitors

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