Ways to prevent theft by staff

Some staff members abuse the trust of their employer and resort to theft – a fairly common crime within the retail world. Whether it’s cash from the till, stealing within the accounts department or taking a product from the shop floor or stock room, it all mounts up to a loss for the employer.

Companies should gently warn all staff that any staff member found stealing will face possible dismissal and may be reported to the police. By clearly flagging this, it can act as a simple deterrent and leaves staff in no doubt as to the consequences of their actions.

Here are a number of ways you can try to tackle theft by staff:

• consider placing CCTV at fire exits and in places where the public and private areas meet, including car parks

• conduct regular, random stock takes; six-month reviews aren’t particularly effective in detecting losses; look for anomalies and continuously audit

• consider asking your staff to obtain a criminal conviction check

• regulate fire exits and any areas from the store leading to access to public areas; try to restrict the points of access

• if you have security, monitor staff exiting the building with random bag checks

• if you have a safe on your premises then it may be an insurance requirement that access is limited or that a section of the key is retained at another address

• if you notice that readily identifiable items are missing, go on social media to see if you can spot them

If you do discover that a staff member has been stealing from you, just get in touch with us and we’ll discuss it with you discreetly before we act.