Theft in the Workplace

Theft in the Workplace

Michael Dobrowolski

CM107: Composition 1

Section 6

October 29, 2013

Kaplan University

       I.       Intro

1.  Hook – Theft in the workplace can have a disastrous result for any company.
2.  Define Theft – Theft is taking property without permission that does not belong to you.
3.  Thesis statement – Theft in the workplace is a serious problem for any business that can financially destroy a business, result in the loss of employees and be a costly problem to fix.

       II.     Why do employees steal?

1.     “ According to the International Foundation for Protection Officers, approximately  

     75% of all employees have stolen at least once in the duration of their careers”.        

     (Shaddock, 2011).

      B.       Employees are may be underpaid.

      C.       Employees may have felt threatened or feel disgruntled.

      D.       Employees may be presented with the opportunity to steal.

     III.       Employee theft is very costly to a business.

      A.       “An estimated 50 billion dollars are lost annually from U.S. Business due to employee  

                 Theft”.  (Shaddock, 2011).

      B.        Due to firing guilty employees it is costly for employers to rehire and train new

                 recruits.

      C.       The company is forced to spend more money on updated security measures.

     IV.       Prevention is crucial if a business is to be free of employee theft.

       A.       Before hiring a new employee background checks should be performed.

      B.     Once hired, the employee needs to know and acknowledge the code of conduct and

               adhere to it.

      C.     The company needs to provide security for itself and its employees.

      V.     Conclusion

      A.     Restate the thesis - Theft in the workplace is a serious problem that  

                financially destroy a business, result in the loss of employees and be a costly

               Problem to fix.

      B.     If a company does not understand why employees steal, theft in the workplace will

              continue to be a problem.

      C.     If a company does not prevent theft, they will continue to lose money and employees.

1. Theft in the workplace can have disastrous results for any company. It can be hard to understand why employees steal or what their motivation is for them to do so. Theft can be big or small and can negatively impact the company financially and morally. Employee theft can be defined as an employee taking property that does not belong to them without permission.  People automatically think that employees steal money or office supplies and products, but stealing can even stretch to giving family and  friends discounts, or wanting to be paid for hours not worked, and even stealing from co- workers.  Theft in the workplace is a serious problem that can financially destroy a business, result in the loss of employees and be a costly problem to fix. ^[a]

A company needs to realize that an employee stealing from their place of work is not unusual. “According to the International Foundation for Protection Officers, approximately 75% of all employees have stolen at least once in the duration of their careers”. ^[b] (Shaddock, 2011). While this statistic is shocking, the company needs to understand and identify why the employee is stealing from their place of work.  One reason may be that the employee feels that they are underpaid. If they feel that they are not being paid enough, are having problems making ends meet, they may feel the need to supplement their income by stealing from their workplace. An employee may steal if they are feeling disgruntled. They may have been reprimanded or demoted, or feel that they are not valued in their place of work. They are feeling discouraged and angry, and feel that by stealing they are “paying back” their employer. Finally an employee may steal if they are presented with the opportunity to do so. A person may never have the premeditated idea to steal, but may be presented with the opportunity where no one will ever find out. They feel the risk of getting caught may be small, so they take the chance and steal. A prime example is if the machine that records an employee’s time card has malfunctioned.  The supervisor then has his employees manually write down the hours worked. This would prove tempting to an employee, and they could report hours that were not actually worked. This of course is stealing money from the company, as the employee would receive money for hours not worked.

With employee theft in the workplace high, it can prove very costly to a business. “An estimated 50 billion dollars are lost annually from U.S. Businesses due to employee theft”. (Shaddock, 2011). This high cost, results in some smaller companies losing too much money and going bankrupt.  As we all know, stealing is illegal and once an employee is caught, most employers will terminate their employment. While firing the guilty employee fixes that one problem, it can create others. If a company has to fire employees often due to theft, they have to go through the process of rehiring and training new recruits. This of course can be very costly. Depending on the position, the company may need to employ trainers or professionals to get the new hires ready to perform their job. Even if the new recruits are trained on the job, it still would mean less highly trained people working for the company, and reduced production. After all any company executive will tell you that time is money. Finally, if a company has a problem with theft they will need to look at their security measures, and procedures. Maybe they are not up to date or not functioning correctly. It is possible that a company will have to go to the expense of updating their security systems or hiring a specialist to come in and evaluate where their problems lie. In the times we live in, high tech security surveillance is common and very costly. Unfortunately it seems to be a necessary evil in today’s times.