Essex County Gas Station Store Fined, Workplace Hazards: Armed Robbery Killed Employee

Essex County, NJ – A gas station convenience store in Irvington should have taken better measures to protect its employees prior to a fatal shooting during an armed robbery in 2015, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says.

On April 25, OSHA levied a $14,000 proposed penalty against Jay Management Inc., which operates the convenience store Getty gas station at 1060 Stuyvesant Avenue.

The citation was issued in connection with the late-night shooting of store employee Ashiwin Patel, 57, of Edison in October of 2015.

According to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, Patel was shot by two, gun-wielding men wearing masks. Authorities later offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the suspects’ arrest.

But according to OSHA, Jay Management should have taken better precautions to protect its employees before the tragic incident.

After conducting inspections of the store on Oct. 28 of 2015 and April 25 of 2016, OSHA determined that Jay Management “exposed the store associate to workplace hazards” that may have contributed to his death.

According to the OSHA citation, the company could have:

• Developed a comprehensive workplace violence prevention program
• Installed panic buttons which alert local authorities and ensure a rapid, reliable response when the alarm is triggered
• Installed physical barriers such as a bullet resistant enclosure which separates customers from the store associates at the cash register
• Redesigned the store to allow for better visibility so that customers and the cash register can be seen from the street and/or parking lot
• Hung warning signs on the premises identifying deterrent measures in effect, such as “The safe is a time lock safe which cannot be opened past certain hours,” “There is a limited amount of accessible cash and lottery tickets on the premises,” and “The premises is monitored by video surveillance”
• Conducted training for all employees so they are aware of the potential security hazards and means to protect themselves and co-workers through established policies and procedures
• Prohibited employees from working alone

“In the past five years, 20 workplace violence incidents involving theft, armed robbery and fights occurred at this store,” said OSHA’s Parsippany Director Kris Hoffman.

“Jay Management was well aware of this history and, even after the death of its employee in October, the employer did nothing to implement safety measures to protect employees. This disregard for employee safety is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.”

Sign up for Patch NJ email newsletters here.

Send local news tips, photos and press releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com