A 19-year-old Walmart employee who was “baked to death” in a large walk-in oven has raised questions about the company’s safety practices.
The charred remains of Gursimran Kaur were discovered last Saturday in an industrial oven at a store in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
But the billion-dollar corporate giant has a long list of fatal incidents at its U.S. locations, including a grandmother crushed by a forklift at a Walmart warehouse in Texas in February.
Other gruesome injuries include a worker who suffered carbon monoxide poisoning from a malfunctioning freezer, a female employee who lost her baby after slipping near an ice machine and a man whose fingers were severed by a meat cutter.
According to the Strategic Organizing Center, a coalition of some of the nation’s largest labor unions, Walmart has the second-highest workplace injury rate in the U.S., with three serious incidents per 100 full-time workers.
But it also employs more people than any company in the US, with more than 1.6 million associates in stores and distribution centers.
A company spokesperson told DailyMail.com that its “safety record is consistent with or better than that of U.S. retail peers.”
David Bradshaw, 30, collapsed during a shift in March. His colleagues claimed he did not receive medical attention for an hour. Bradshaw was pronounced dead at the hospital
In 2016, Ken Steele was run over by a semi-truck delivering goods to a superstore in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The 79-year-old worked part-time while retired
However, some injured workers have said Walmart has failed to take immediate medical action in the past.
David Bradshaw, 30, died in March after collapsing in a canteen and was reportedly denied medical attention for an hour.
He collapsed during a shift at a distribution center in Shelby, North Carolina.
Bradshaw “fell face down to the ground and appeared to be having a seizure” near the cafeteria.
His mother, Linda, told WBTV, “There was a period where he was laying there when he collapsed and they didn’t call — nobody called 911.”
Employees claimed there was an AED, but it was locked and only used by someone trained to do so.
Meanwhile, 68-year-old Elena Rios was working in a warehouse in Fort Worth, Texas, in February when she became trapped between a forklift and a pallet rack.
Rios, a mother of four and grandmother of 13, had worked at Walmart for 10 years and was certified to operate forklifts and other heavy machinery.
She was driving the forklift at the time of the accident.
Shockingly, the family first heard about the fatal accident on the news and were given conflicting information about what had occurred.
Walmart has the second highest injury rate of any company in the US at 571. Walmart ranks second behind USPS, which has had 1,142 worker injuries since 2015.
The family still does not know exactly what the cause of death is.
Walmart closed the store a day after Elena was killed and offered our associates counseling and other resources as they dealt with this tragic event, the statement said.
However, the family is dissatisfied with what they said: a complete lack of communication and transparency.
Data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) shows that 571 incidents were recorded between January 2015 and May 2022.
That was second only to the United States Postal Service (USPS) with 1,142 injuries.
“While all injuries are unfortunate, Walmart is adapting policies, training and practices to help prevent injuries and respond to emerging trends,” the Walmart spokesperson said.
“The data does not support the view that working at Walmart poses a unique safety risk.
“Walmart’s commitment to health, safety and security is supported by strong policies, training and proactive management.”
Kaur’s death last week is currently under investigation and it is unclear how she became trapped in the oven.
According to the community appeal, Kaur’s charred remains were found after a few hours in the bakery’s walk-in oven by her mother, who also worked at the store.
Janikka Perry, 38, also lost her life in the giant store.
On January 16, 2022, Perry was working her bakery shift at the North Little Rock location in Arkansas when she felt faint.
She took the issues to her manager, who reportedly “kept herself together” because the store was short-staffed.
Perry had heart problems and diabetes, which she informed management of when she was hired, but continued to work to avoid being punished.
The pain lasted for hours, forcing her to seek comfort in a bathroom stall toward the end of her shift.
She sat in the white-tiled toilet for about 87 minutes trying to catch her breath, but then called emergency services at 11:21 p.m. New Republic reported.
“I’m having trouble breathing,” she told a dispatcher between coughs. “I feel like I’m going to faint.”
Medics arrived within nine minutes, found Perry unconscious on the floor and rushed her to hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Gursimran Kaur was found dead in a Walmart walk-in oven on Saturday. Her charred remains were discovered on the floor of the unit
Elena Rios, a 13-year-old grandmother, died in February when she became trapped between a forklift and a pellet rack
In 2016, Ken Steele was run over by a semi-truck delivering goods to a superstore in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Steele, 79, worked at Walmart for a long time and retired but took a part-time job.
A police report indicated that Steele was standing behind the World Way Freight Transport facility, helping the driver get closer to the unloading area, when he was run over by the truck’s trailer.
Walmart has long been the go-to place for Black Friday deals, frequented by crowds looking for the best and cheapest items.
But the tense night at a Walmart in Valley Stream, New York, turned deadly for one worker in 2008 when he was trampled to death.
Jdimytai Damour, 34, was in the middle of a crowd and fell on his back as customers rushed over him.
Detective Lt. Michael Fleming, who led the Nassau Police Department’s investigation, said the store lacked adequate security, which would have prevented thousands of people from rushing in at once.
Janikka Perry, 38, also lost her life in the giant store in 2022. She had a heartache and allegedly mentioned this to her manager, who said, ‘get it together.’ She died in a Walmart bathroom
Jdimytai Damour, 34, died while working on Black Friday in 2008. He was trampled to death by customers
Donald Wells was working at a site in Kentucky in 2010 when he suffered injuries from exposure to carbon monoxide while working in a freezer.
On June 7, 2014, Shamsey Duncan, who was pregnant at the time, reported that she was working at Walmart in Bossier City, Louisiana, where she slipped on a mat in front of a Reddy Ice freezer and fell face down on the floor.
Later that afternoon, Duncan felt unwell and went to a hospital. There, hospital staff said her unborn child had no heartbeat, and they initiated delivery of Duncan’s stillborn baby the next day.
Then, on June 10, 2018, an employee at a store in Hodgkins, Illinois, was cutting meat on a Hobart Vertical Band and hit his hand on the blade, amputating two fingers.