When you’re in a desperate situation, stealing might seem like a great way to temporarily solve your problems. If you can just grab some food off the shelf at Walmart, you’ll find a way to pay for what you need tomorrow. Or if you can manage to swipe some bills from a cash register, you won’t have to worry about where your next few meals will come from.
The problem with this, however, is that you’re almost always going to get caught. Below, you’ll find a story that a business owner recently shared on Reddit detailing why he plans to call the cops on his employee’s partner, as well as some of the replies invested readers left him.
It’s always wise for business owners to have CCTV in their shops
Image credits: anankkml / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)
After this man noticed he was missing a large amount of cash, his cameras proved exactly who the culprit was
Later, the business owner shared an update on the situation
Image credits: r0ckafellarbx
Image credits: Matt Popovich / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
One in every 11 people in the United States shoplifts
Whether you believe that stealing is morally wrong or not, there’s no question that it’s against the law and likely to leave you in some sticky legal situations if you’re bold enough to try it. When I was in high school, many of my friends would swipe lipstick, sunglasses and other small items from shops, but I never participated because the fear of getting caught and the guilt that would come later would eat me alive.
But according to Loss Prevention Media, theft is actually quite common. They report that approximately one in every 11 people in the United States shoplifts, and about a quarter of shoplifters are children. This habit often starts early and can be very hard to break, as 55% of adults who steal say that they started when they were teens. And even if your kids aren’t shoplifting, they probably know someone who does, as 89% of kids know peers who steal.
Typically, shoplifting is not a premeditated crime, Loss Prevention Media reports. Nearly three quarters of shoplifters say that they choose to do so spontaneously. There’s usually not a lot of risk involved either, as on average, shoplifters are only caught once in every 48 times they steal something. And even then, shop owners only bother to involve the police half the time they catch customers stealing.
Theft in the workplace is a common problem
There are a variety of reasons why someone might steal, ranging from simply being bored and wanting to do something thrilling to desperately needing food and money to make it through the week. But this can turn into compulsive behavior, sometimes even developing into kleptomania. Loss Prevention Media also notes that 57% of adult shoplifters and a third of juvenile shoplifters admit that it’s difficult for them to stop, even after they’ve been caught.
However, theft doesn’t only happen on the streets and in shops. In fact, it commonly happens in the workplace among the people who employers trust the most. According to Embroker, a whopping 75% of employees admit to stealing from their bosses at least once. And employees are responsible for 90% of all significant theft losses in companies.
Now, in this particular case, we don’t know whether the employee knew that his partner was going to steal from his workplace or not. But the reality is that many workers have no problem swiping something from their boss. Embroker reports that cash theft is the top cause of employee theft for over a fifth of companies, and 60% of workers admit that they would steal from their boss if they knew they wouldn’t get caught.
Employee theft costs American businesses $50 billion annually
Over a third of millennials also justify stealing from their jobs, perhaps because they believe large corporations don’t need the money as much as they do. The top three sectors where employee theft are most prominent are finance, insurance and healthcare.
And while it might not seem like a big deal to grab a little extra from the cash register or take some free snacks from work without telling anyone, CNBC reports that employee theft costs businesses in the U.S. $50 billion every year.
But employee theft doesn’t only come in the form of slipping some money out of the cash register. It can also include time theft (when employees report working more hours than they actually do), fraud, cyber and data theft and more. Unfortunately, it’s extremely difficult for bosses to find employees that they can trust.
We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments below, pandas. Would you have gotten the police involved immediately if you were in this business owner’s situation? Feel free to share, and then if you’re interested in checking out another Bored Panda piece discussing stealing in the workplace, look no further than right here!
Readers called out the mother for her actions and encouraged the business owner to file charges
English (US) ·