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BUSINESS ATTITUDE Surprisingly, business owners accept employee theft as a part of doing business. Some managers believe that no matter what they do to prevent, discourage, or punish employee theft, employees will continue to steal. Others turn a blind eye to employee theft or implicitly condone it because they have limited abilities to reward people or persuade people. This type of approach has been used to get employees to work undesirable night shifts or perform duties no one else is willing to do. Other business owners deny employee theft and are unable to confront the possibility that employees are stealing. Finally, some owners believe that the cost of installing effective anti-theft controls would out weigh those of employee theft (Juneja 31). Nonetheless, the majority of business owners have installed controls to cut their losses by employee theft. These business owners believe that without theft controls and deterrents, their businesses would not have survived. One business owner believes that employee theft can literally eat you out of house and home. THEFT DETERRENCE Theft deterrence can come in the form of loss-prevention programs, pre-employment screening, and electronic devices. One of the most inexpensive deterrents is having a well-explained ethics policy that specifically addresses theft and the consequences of stealing. The policy should be read and signed by all employees. Along with the policy, a high standard of ethics and conduct should be displayed and supported by management. This sets an example that the employee can follow. Management needs to make it clear that stealing is unacceptable behavior and is against the employees best interest. Another inexpensive means of reducing theft is to set up a company hot line for employees to anonymously report suspicious activities or stealing. One of the best ways to reduce employee theft may be to treat workers fairly and compassionately (Juneja 31). Important factors when announcing bad news or layoffs are to thoroughly explain what is happening, to be supportive, and compassionate to employee concerns. Equality in pay and benefits for the same position and reward for a job well done promotes the idea of fairness and reinforces honest employee behavior. When employees believe they are a part of the company, theft is reduced because people do not usually steal from themselves. Employment pre-screening and education have also proven to minimize theft. Pre-screening allows the employer to examine the integrity of the person being hired and to thoroughly check their background (Adler 31). Some companies have been known to hire outside firms who specialize in applicant background checking and testing. Employers should avoid panic hiring. Bring the problem to the employees attention through theft prevention education and discuss its overall effects on the company. Businesses should show how theft affects the individual’s job in particular. The education process encourages company loyalty and as a result reduces theft. Keeping track of cash and inventory can be achieved through procedural controls. Inventory and control procedures should be audited on a regular basis. Audits are a great way to identify losses before they get out of hand (Cook). Using an outside source for the audit will greatly reduce the chances of figure tampering and will provide an objective viewpoint regarding procedures. One of the best ways to control cash is to have more than one person involved in its handling (Cook). For example, the person applying payments to accounts should not be the person who makes the bank deposit. In the case of cash registers, only the manager should take the readings and only one person should be assigned to the cash drawer. This reduces the possible suspects, if theft or shortages occur. When dealing with employee theft it is important to be consistent in the punishment (Holt 19). No matter the form of punishment, whether immediate dismissal, prosecution, restitution, or any combination thereof, it must be the same for everyone, every time. By consistently taking the same action for all employees a message is sent from management about its position regarding theft. Although prosecution appears to be the biggest deterrent to theft, many employers usually prefer to fire the offender and seek restitution in court. A final deterrent to employee theft is the high-tech solution. The installation of security systems for viewing and recording employee actions will help to some degree, but those committed to stealing will work around the cameras. For cameras to be completely effective, coverage must be 100 percent during working hours and access all locations. This is very rarely the case. Employees become aware of the camera viewing area and find ways of circumventing it. Also, if the system is not monitored 24 hours a day, reviewing video tape can be a time consuming job. RECOMMENDATION While the idea of eliminating employee theft entirely remains a virtual impossibility, there are ways to impede it. High-tech solutions treat the cause not the symptom. It is better to concentrate on prevention than

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