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Combating Internal Theft
When it comes to theft, most optical professionals think in terms of shoplifters, burglars, or other outsiders. What they fail to consider is the most likely suspects in the lineup may be their own employees
by Liz Martínez, ABOC, NCLC, Illustration by Jon Krause

These facts are especially difficult for eyecare professionals to swallow. There are, however, steps you can take to combat employee theft.

1. START TODAY. You've read the statistics and gained an understanding of the magnitude of the problem. The next step is to accept the fact that internal theft can happen in your business, and in fact, has probably been going on.

Now, make the decision to act on this information. That doesn't mean pointing fingers or strip-searching all employees. It does, however, mean implementing changes now. Today.

2. RECOGNIZE CLUES. People who steal do offer clues to their identity. The trick is to recognize them. Has a particular staff member changed lately? Behaviors to watch include: coming in to work late, coming in early, being broke all the time, flashing wads of cash, experiencing severe mood swings, being irritable, missing work
frequently, and refusing to take a day off. Any behavior that is out of character should be examined.

While these signs don't automatically signal an employee is stealing, they can provide hints into a difficulty that you might be able to help the worker nip in the bud before it becomes a big problem for you.

3. IMPROVE MANAGEMENT SKILLS. If employees see you as a person rather than the representative of a big business with unlimited resources, they will be less likely to steal. It is always more difficult to take things from another person than it is to deprive a corporation of cash or goods.

4. START AUDITING. An employee who "owns" a cash-handling job is in a ripe position.

• Cross train and rotate. Cross-train employees to perform cash-related tasks, such as balancing the register and preparing bank deposits. Then rotate them on a random basis.

No one should know who will be responsible for handling the cash on any given day. Assigning these tasks without a predictable pattern will eliminate the opportunity for employees to cover up previous cash thefts.

• Close out registers. On a random basis, close out the cash register in the middle of a shift and count the drawer yourself. Doing so keeps employees from conducting fraudulent transactions and then removing the money at the end of the day to ensure that the drawer balances.

If you end up finding consistent shortages, the worker or workers with access to the register will have some explaining to do.

• Run exception reports. If you have auditing software for register transactions, make sure you understand how to use it. These reports can pinpoint patterns of refunds, voids and no-sales. Repeated transactions of this type can point to a dishonest cashier.

5. HIRE WISELY. The best treatment for internal theft is prevention. Hiring someone is like a marriage: both are easier to do than to un-do.

Before you invite someone to become part of your optical family, it's best to take a few precautions.

• Reference checks. The simplest action is to pick up the phone and call the prospective employee's references. It seems as though
someone listed as a reference would be likely to say only good things, but that is not always the case.

Although many corporations are strict about not divulging information more in-depth than name, rank, and serial number, this industry is small.

If you aren't personally acquainted with the person's previous employer, you probably know someone who is. And, because they meet so many people, frame and supply reps are also fonts of information.

• Legal questions. Ask probing (but legal) questions. Has the person been convicted of a felony? (You can't necessarily ask about prior arrests, but convictions are a matter of public record.) If so, that's important information that should be taken into consideration.

• Credit checks. Credit checks can be conducted for a small fee with the prospective employee's written consent. This is worthwhile as it can shed light on whether the person is responsible or has left a string of bad debt behind them. If they can't manage their cash flow, they may be tempted to "borrow" from you.

• Drug tests. These can be performed by a lab at a low cost. If your new employee uses illegal drugs or abuses prescription drugs, the time to find out about it is before they come to work for you.

5. INTERNAL PROGRAMS. You can't be everywhere, so enlist the assistance of employees.

• Employee hotline. Set up an anonymous hotline they can call with information about internal theft.

• Open-door policy. If your optical is too small to have a toll-free number that rings at headquarters, then make it known that you have an open-door policy. Or, for a small fee, you can engage an outside company to handle any tips from employees.

• Bonus. Offering a bonus to anyone whose tip results in prosecution or recovery of cash or merchandise is an extra incentive for employees.

6. PROSECUTION. If you discover that someone is stealing, the most important step you can take is to bring their behavior to the attention of police and prosecutors.

Many owners and managers are reluctant to take this action for a variety of reasons. Regardless, the problem with failing to prosecute a thief doesn't stop the stealing because he or she gets fired. Instead, the dishonest employee gets a job with an optical down the road and steals from that business, too.

"The buck," as Harry Truman said, "stops here." So, if you have a dishonest employee on staff, it's your responsibility to bring it to the attention of law enforcement.

Liz Martínez is a licensed optician and author of the book The Retail Manager's Guide to Crime and Loss Prevention. She teaches criminal justice and consults with businesses on loss prevention. She can be reached at www.LizMartinez.com.