Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 12:34PMStolen Statues, Identity Theft, and the Dine & Dash
Is Your Restaurant Security Adequate on All Fronts?
A recent security camera video of 3 saggy-pants morons stealing a 300 pound, $6000 Big Boy statue (video below) from the front of a soon-to-be-open restaurant got me mad, and it got me thinking. I got mad because I know this is all too common an occurrence in restaurants. And I started thinking that with the struggles the restaurant industry has been through in the recent recession/depression, you as restaurant leaders most likely have seen an increase in theft in and around your stores. Is this true in your experience?
I'm talking about:
- Restaurant employee theft by fraud - identity theft, floating bev's from one tab to the next in your POS system
- Guest theft by falsehood - Dine and Dash, false complaints about quality of a 90% eaten item, your cool new ramekins leave with the to go box
- or Theft by stranger - robbery, burglary, or vandalism
It's tragic that we're often shocked when someone exhibits integrity and we accept a lack of integrity as the norm, whether in the workplace or elsewhere.
Leave your comments below.
Read here for more on How to Deal with Restaurant Employee Theft
Reader Comments (4)
Brian! This is occuring far too often. I talked to a manager the other day and 46 of his pagers went missing in one day. That is 300 bucks off the bottom line to replace them. He blamed it on a "college" scavenger hunt. Stealing statues and property??? Why? I just don't get it.
Unfortunately you're right. It does happen all too often, James.
Having done some consultant work for some restaurant outlets, focused mostly on cost issues, employee theft is the first thing I look for. Unfortunately it's exists on a much smaller, yet grander scale. Unlike the theft shown here, which (I have to wonder why they were all dressed in stock black BOH style pants)...I have seen theft occur in so many different ways, it's impossible to explain all the types. From cases of ribs and chicken, to hundreds of thousands of dollars over a few short years. The best employees are those who treat the place they work at, as if it were their own.
It's a challenge, because as we know, in this industry every grain or rice and corn kernel is worth something...and over time a mouthful a day can also add up. Employee theft is just sad, because they are biting the hand that feeds them!
Thanks for the input, Jeff.