Thief at work...............

[redgtxdi]

So, co-worker x was tipped off that co-worker y may be trying to steal money from a cash register at work. (We take cash sales for occasional general-public measuring instrument sales).

Anyway..........long story short is that there should be $310 on-hand at work & today before I left ( as suggested ) I counted down cash & noticed there is only $260. (Hmmmm.......exactly $50 missing).

So, now I've got to confront the person tomorrow. (Yes, I'm ready to fire this person)

Now, what if they deny???

A.) We were tipped off
B.) The money's missing exacty 2 days later.


?????

P.S. I should add that there's a possibility that because tomorrow's pay day, this person may try to replenish said funds a day or two later before sweeps & deposits are done on Friday. (Soooooo.........thief-like borrowing??)

 

[2Xtreme21]

I don't get what you're asking, but have a police officer present during your meeting and inform the person of your desire to press charges? No need to tell the guy who told you or how you found out.

 

[ViviTheMage]

you have enough evidence!

conviction is in their future

 

[waggy]

if they deny it? you better have some good proof. right now you have one persons word that another was planning to take it.

 

[redgtxdi]

Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21
I don't get what you're asking, but have a police officer present during your meeting and inform the person of your desire to press charges? No need to tell the guy who told you or how you found out.

Well, I don't want to be accused of a wrongful accusation if the person maintains their innocence. (I've suspected he's stolen before, but the #'s were small enough that we didn't bother & problems would go away for months).

Anyway.............no need for police. The guy wouldn't be a threat even if he came after me.

 

[Skeeedunt]

How do you know coworker x isn't trying to set up coworker y and pocket the cash?

 

[RKS]

Originally posted by: redgtxdi

Originally posted by: 2Xtreme21
I don't get what you're asking, but have a police officer present during your meeting and inform the person of your desire to press charges? No need to tell the guy who told you or how you found out.

Well, I don't want to be accused of a wrongful accusation if the person maintains their innocence. (I've suspected he's stolen before, but the #'s were small enough that we didn't bother & problems would go away for months).

Anyway.............no need for police. The guy wouldn't be a threat even if he came after me.

He will be when he comes back with an attorney. I hope you have solid proof before you terminate his employment/accuse him of embezzlement or theft.

 

[redgtxdi]

Originally posted by: Skeeedunt
How do you know coworker x isn't trying to set up coworker y and pocket the cash?

Not a............ummmm........."less than" a snowball's chance in hell. (She doesn't need the money & she doesn't care either way)

 

[BigJ]

You don't have any receipts or records showing what should be in the drawer?

Also, this becomes a problem when multiple people work out of a single cash drawer. One of the things you're taught if you've ever worked as a cashier is the only person that goes in your drawer unsupervised is you. If a manager tries to go into your drawer, you watch him like a hawk.

 

[Cdubneeddeal]

Tough call. If you don't have substantial proof you're going with someones word which can cause problems. But I think the best thing to do is confront him in your office, back room, whatever, and tell him that you've noticed money missing from the register and see what his reaction is (Don't do this with people around, very important). I wouldn't tell him you were informed by someone else because that gives him room to interrogate other employees. Don't even think about firing him without proof. Unless you play your cards right and use his attendance as leverage.

 

[Gunslinger08]

Don't make an accusation. Just bring it up casually and see how he/she reacts. Something like "Hey y, I noticed that there was $50 missing from the register the other night. Do you happen to know anything about that?"

 

[redgtxdi]

Originally posted by: RKS

He will be when he comes back with an attorney. I hope you have solid proof before you terminate his employment/accuse him of embezzlement or theft.

Well co-worker x was tipped off by co-worker y's live-in girlfriend that he would probably steal money this week. So, we have that conversation as well as a timeline that leaves him the only potential suspect, unless co-worker x is willing to throw her life away over $50........(I'm puttin' that up there w/ the likelihood of Gates handing Microsoft over to Steve Jobs).

Anyway.........he could say he had a horrible bout of "I can't count back change", but I don't know how that would fly given the precedence.

??

 

[redgtxdi]

The other thing I thought about doing was having a co-worker witness the current money count and then, if the money is returned later in the week (payday's tomorrow) then have that same employee witness the new count & bring it up to him then. (Obviously expressing to everyone that NOBODY touches the drawer except employee y and myself).

???

 

[RossMAN]

Is it possible you can catch them in the act? IMHO that would be the best approach.

 

[quakefiend420]

doesn't sound like you have enough proof to do anything, and firing them without evidence is just asking for a lawsuit

personally, i would set up a hidden camera on the register after hours, so noone knows it's being installed, then not mention the missing money at all(as if it went unnoticed) and wait for the thief to get ballsy and do it again

taped evidence and a firing>hearsay and a lawsuit

 

[CrackRabbit]

Why not just fire them, if you are in a "right to work" state you need not give a reason.
No accusations to worry about.

 

[Evadman]

Originally posted by: CrackRabbit
Why not just fire them, if you are in a "right to work" state you need not give a reason.
No accusations to worry about.

Exactly. If you say it is for stealing, you may end up in all kinds of legal issues. Just say "get out" and be done with it.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

I'm sure the laws vary from state to state but I do know that in Alaska you can fire someone without cause. I'm sure it's like that in other places too. You might want to look into the laws in your neck of the woods.

"Come in and sit down. I'm going to keep this short. We're letting you go. We will observe you as you collect any personal belongings you have here and escort you out the door. You'll receive your final paycheck in three days. Sorry."

In cases like this, that might be the better option as opposed to accusing them of a theft you can't prove.

 

[redgtxdi]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Is it possible you can catch them in the act? IMHO that would be the best approach.

Well, I'm sure there's a way (camera?) but the camera would be hard to hide.

It just really sucks that people choose to suck!

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: redgtxdi

Originally posted by: RKS

He will be when he comes back with an attorney. I hope you have solid proof before you terminate his employment/accuse him of embezzlement or theft.

Well co-worker x was tipped off by co-worker y's live-in girlfriend that he would probably steal money this week. So, we have that conversation as well as a timeline that leaves him the only potential suspect, unless co-worker x is willing to throw her life away over $50........(I'm puttin' that up there w/ the likelihood of Gates handing Microsoft over to Steve Jobs).

Anyway.........he could say he had a horrible bout of "I can't count back change", but I don't know how that would fly given the precedence.

??

One thing I would do is keep your trap shut about why you're firing him. Just say something along the lines of "It's better if we part ways."

If you spread rumors or gossip, defamation of character is a big problem. You need documented proof, not hearsay.

 

[montanafan]

First of all, is he the only person who had access to that cash register when the money went missing? If not, he could say it was whoever else did.

Second, if he was the only one to have access, he could, as you said, just say that it was an honest mistake giving back change or something.

Third, if you're going to be relying on his live-in girlfriend to corroborate what employee x told you, there might be a problem there. She could very likely have a change of heart when it comes to her boyfriend and say she never said any such thing.

I think I'd handle it the way Cdubneeddeal said. Just speak with him about money missing from the register, but don't make any accusations. If he makes any of the aforementioned excuses, tell him yes, that's a possibility, but it's still a problem so here's how we're going to handle it. Then tell him you'll be doing the counting of his register before and after with a witness because even if it is an honest mistake, it's one that the company can't afford to have continue and would be terms for dismissal. Only thing is, you'd better be prepared to carry out the same procedure with every other cashier or he could come back and say you were setting him up for it. Videoing the registers as quakefiend420 said could also be helpful.

Edit: I don't believe California is a "right to work" state.

 

[jackace]

Coming from a person that has worked in fast food, other restaurants, and convenient stores with lots of money transactions. If the till is open for multiple people to do transactions with customers, you do not have enough proof to fire someone. To fire someone you have to prove they were the only person using that till AND proof that the till is short money. Most places I have worked have the manager check the money at the start and so does the employee. both have to sign off at the start of a shift. At the end the employee counts out the money and signs and then the manager does the same.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: jackace
Coming from a person that has worked in fast food, other restaurants, and convenient stores with lots of money transactions. If the till is open for multiple people to do transactions with customers, you do not have enough proof to fire someone. To fire someone you have to prove they were the only person using that till AND proof that the till is short money. Most places I have worked have the manager check the money at the start and so does the employee. both have to sign off at the start of a shift. At the end the employee counts out the money and signs and then the manager does the same.

Like I said before, it depends on the laws where you work. In many places you can fire without cause. When you know, but can't prove anything, summary termination is the proper course of action.

If the laws in your area don't allow that, then you're stuck with the thief until you catch them.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy

Originally posted by: jackace
Coming from a person that has worked in fast food, other restaurants, and convenient stores with lots of money transactions. If the till is open for multiple people to do transactions with customers, you do not have enough proof to fire someone. To fire someone you have to prove they were the only person using that till AND proof that the till is short money. Most places I have worked have the manager check the money at the start and so does the employee. both have to sign off at the start of a shift. At the end the employee counts out the money and signs and then the manager does the same.

Like I said before, it depends on the laws where you work. In many places you can fire without cause. When you know, but can't prove anything, summary termination is the proper course of action.

If the laws in your area don't allow that, then you're stuck with the thief until you catch them.

I think that even if you can fire, let's all take a step backwards. What if Coworker Y is being setup? What if Coworker X is just mistaken? What if Coworker Y really is a douche? Come on. If you can setup an investigation, then by all means go for it. If you can't catch anyone and you're losing money still, it's time to take action and start probing further.

Let's be civil and not jump to conclusions so quickly. Even if you're firing the right guy, I think it is best to make sure you have the right guy before you pull the trigger.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: DLeRium

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy

Originally posted by: jackace
Coming from a person that has worked in fast food, other restaurants, and convenient stores with lots of money transactions. If the till is open for multiple people to do transactions with customers, you do not have enough proof to fire someone. To fire someone you have to prove they were the only person using that till AND proof that the till is short money. Most places I have worked have the manager check the money at the start and so does the employee. both have to sign off at the start of a shift. At the end the employee counts out the money and signs and then the manager does the same.

Like I said before, it depends on the laws where you work. In many places you can fire without cause. When you know, but can't prove anything, summary termination is the proper course of action.

If the laws in your area don't allow that, then you're stuck with the thief until you catch them.

I think that even if you can fire, let's all take a step backwards. What if Coworker Y is being setup? What if Coworker X is just mistaken? What if Coworker Y really is a douche? Come on. If you can setup an investigation, then by all means go for it. If you can't catch anyone and you're losing money still, it's time to take action and start probing further.

Let's be civil and not jump to conclusions so quickly. Even if you're firing the right guy, I think it is best to make sure you have the right guy before you pull the trigger.

Oh I agree. But as an employer (former employer) you usually know who is stealing and who isn't . This isn't Dr Evil we're talking about. They aren't criminal masterminds. It's usually pretty obvious.