Pizza Today - October 2023 - 28

The many forms of employee
theft
To be certain, employee theft takes
many different forms.
Some snag cash from the register.
Others snag product, such as alcohol,
ingredients or supplies. Penizotto, in
fact, has seen some employees make
sales of stolen products on the black
market a side hustle.
Some engage in the age-old practice
of " sweethearting " and give food and
drink away to friends. Others engage
in a more recent practice: taking a
photo of a customer's credit card with
their smartphone and using that information
in illicit ways. While the latter
act doesn't produce a direct loss to the
business, it can significantly harm a
restaurant's reputation and its relationship
with customers.
Some get creative, particularly at the
point-of-sale (POS) system, issuing
refunds to their own credit card or
removing items from a ticket in favor
of a tip. Others cut side deals with
sales reps that send dollars to their
pocket, not the restaurant's P&L statement.
" Now,
imagine this over the course
of a day. The impact on the business
can be tremendous, " says Penizotto,
adding that employee theft also hampers
a restaurant's culture and team
morale.
While employee theft might not be
top of mind for small business owners,
loss prevention insiders encourage
restaurant leadership to be mindful of
warning signs, which can range from
cash shortages and too-frequent voids
to employees living above their means.
" Quite often, employee theft starts
simple and small, but it blows up in
frequency and amount quickly, " Penizotto
says.
4 preventative steps against
employee theft
Pizzeria owners can limit the
potential of employee theft with a mix
of active leadership, diligent attention
28 / PIZZATODAY.COM / OCTOBER 2023
to the numbers and clear protocols.
#1: Show your vigilance. Regularly
ask questions of employees. What
happened with this void? What's
behind this customer comp? Be mindful
to adopt a curious, rather than
accusatory, tone, as voids and comps
often happen for legitimate reasons.
But do ask questions.
" Talk of your awareness spreads, "
Penizotto says. " If there is a dishonest
employee and you show your awareness,
that employee either rights
themselves, finds another method or,
quite often, leaves. "
#2: Watch for changes in numbers.
Operators should monitor their
numbers to inform business decisionmaking
and detect theft. They should
note discrepancies or if anything, such
as payroll or purchasing, is running
awry. Product orders and sales, for
instance, should travel in parallel over
time.
Though some out-of-whack numbers
could be solved with an operational
fix or training, some might be
attributed to employee theft.
" Follow the breadcrumbs because
the numbers don't lie, " Bradley says.
#3: Set clear expectations - and
consequences. Ownership should
set the stage for employee conduct,
including theft, during hiring, including
having employees sign a code of
conduct to eliminate any potential
misunderstandings.
" Be up front when hiring what the
consequences are if any employee is
caught stealing, " says Doug Rector of
Washington-based Northwest Loss
Prevention Consultants, who also
recommends restaurants conduct background
checks on prospective employees
as an added preventative measure
against employee theft.
#4: Put up guardrails. Don't
make it easy for employees to steal - or
even be tempted to do so. Some wellinformed
practices will help to this
end. For instance, restaurants should
enforce policies around employees
using cell phones on the floor or near
the POS. If restaurants have cameras,
including technology that matches
every transaction or exception to a
video clip, they should make this
known to staff.
" Limit opportunity, " Penizotto says.
" If your beer cooler is next to the open
back door and you're not monitoring
it, then you've created a prime opportunity. "
The
aftermath of employee theft
When investigating a potential issue
of employee theft, restaurant ownership
should take detailed notes, collect video
images and document any relevant
conversations, interactions or behaviors.
" You should be doing a lot of
background before you ever confront
an individual, " Bradley says. " You want
to know something's happened, not be
guessing something's happened. "
Penizotto says ownership should go
into any conversation about potential
employee theft with facts, details and a
clear-minded action plan.
" Don't let the punishment be emotional, "
Penizotto says. " Set a policy
and honor it: someone steals, and this
is what we do. Establish the consequences
before a face is ever assigned
to the problem. "
And while some restaurant owners
don't want to take the time necessary
to file a police report, Rector urges
otherwise for the collective good of the
industry.
" What [bypassing a police report]
does is pawn the employee off to
another restaurant where they probably
will steal again, " he says. " My
suggestion is to prosecute. Word will
get around. "
DANIEL P. SMITH Chicago-based
writer has covered business issues and best
practices for a variety of trade publications,
newspapers, and magazines.
http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
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