A retailer became a victim of employee theft again recently. The cost to their business was $2,500. During the job interview, the employee in question claimed they had been out of the workforce for a year taking time off.

However, given their age and health the story did not make sense but it was not questioned. The reality is they were working in another newsagency for much of the year and immediately sacked for gross misconduct because of theft. They paid money back and left without prosecution. They found a new job in a store one hour from the old job, and the new boss eventually discovered their dishonesty.

If there is a gap in a resume, pursue it, ask questions. If you are not sure, don’t hire them.

There are people who like working in independent stores because of the family aspect and they may be less likely to be strict controls on managing cash. This can provide a window of opportunity wide enough for them to steal (as they did in the latest case) thousands of dollars.

Employee theft costs between three – five times more than shopper theft, yet small business retailers obsess about shopper theft and tend to ignore theft by their employees – until it hurts them.

You can find more advice and guidance about store security.