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Crime Against Employees Cause for Concern
Listed under: News
Published: Thursday, April 15, 2010
Almost one in ten retail workers have committed some form of crime against their employer over the last 12 months, with a whopping 56,000 admitting to outright theft during the past year alone, according to new research published by security solutions group, G4S Secure Solutions.
The findings, which show that more than 84,000 employees have removed goods they perceive as being damaged without paying for them, reveal that a shocking 50,000 of those who have committed crimes against their employers have done so because they feel entitled to some form of reward for their hard work, with factors such as not having enough money to purchase the goods for themselves, and the thrill of removing items without paying for them, also cited as common reasons for their wrongdoings.
Commenting on the worrying report, Adrian Beck, head of the department of criminology at the University of Leicester, says, “In many respects, staff dishonesty is the 500lb gorilla in the corner of the store – most see it, but few like to discuss it, and even fewer are willing to take it on.
“Retail organisations need to focus primarily on the problems which are most controllable within their businesses, and internal theft and process failures both fall into this category,” he adds. “The results from this survey once again show the importance of understanding all the threats faced by retailers, and highlight the danger of assuming that business losses are predominantly due to external thieves.”
The findings, which show that more than 84,000 employees have removed goods they perceive as being damaged without paying for them, reveal that a shocking 50,000 of those who have committed crimes against their employers have done so because they feel entitled to some form of reward for their hard work, with factors such as not having enough money to purchase the goods for themselves, and the thrill of removing items without paying for them, also cited as common reasons for their wrongdoings.
Commenting on the worrying report, Adrian Beck, head of the department of criminology at the University of Leicester, says, “In many respects, staff dishonesty is the 500lb gorilla in the corner of the store – most see it, but few like to discuss it, and even fewer are willing to take it on.
“Retail organisations need to focus primarily on the problems which are most controllable within their businesses, and internal theft and process failures both fall into this category,” he adds. “The results from this survey once again show the importance of understanding all the threats faced by retailers, and highlight the danger of assuming that business losses are predominantly due to external thieves.”
