Menards fined $25K by OSHA for death of worker in Golden Valley

Group calls for justice for Golden Valley Menards worker killed as OSHA launches investigation

For the second day, people demanding justice for James Stanback came out to the Golden Valley Menards to make their voices heard.

GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. (FOX 9) - Menards has been fined $25,000 from the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) following the death of a worker using a forklift last summer in Golden Valley, Minnesota.

The worker, 19-year-old James Stanback, was killed in July of 2021 when a pallet of lumber fell as he was trying to move it off a stack with the forklift. The lumber fell on Stanback, leaving him crushed.

Along with the OSHA investigation, the death also sparked a protest, as Stanback's grieving family went to the store in the hours of his death demanding the store close for the evening. Menards ultimately closed its Golden Valley location for the remainder of that night.

Menards faces a secure storage violation, which means OSHA believes the store failed to stack the lumber, so it was safe and stable. Menards is contesting the violation.

We're told by OSHA that a $25,000 fine is standard for any violation resulting in a death.