diff --git a/scripts/unix/dependencies-npm.sh b/scripts/unix/dependencies-npm.sh
index 601db3de..e4d14a33 100755
--- a/scripts/unix/dependencies-npm.sh
+++ b/scripts/unix/dependencies-npm.sh
@@ -114,7 +114,7 @@ if [ -n "$ARGV_PREFIX" ]; then
 
   # Using `--prefix` might cause npm to create an empty `etc` directory
   if [ ! "$(ls -A "$ARGV_PREFIX/etc")" ]; then
-    rm -rf "$ARGV_PREFIX/etc"
+    rmdir "$ARGV_PREFIX/etc"
   fi
 
 fi