People Stealing at Work...

[MattM68]

So, my girlfriend works at a daycare this summer so she can make some money for school in the fall. A few days ago a woman she works with was yelling at them about how somebody there stole $300 from her sons wallet, which was in her purse. This morning my girlfriend looked in her wallet to find that $150 or more had been stolen. The kids at the daycare are anywhere from a few months old to about 3 or 4. So obviously they aren't stealing from people's wallets. What should she do in this situation? There are no cameras where she works, and she has no idea who could be stealing money. Any ideas would be appreciated!

Everyone just be careful where you put your belongings, and don't be too trusting of anyone you don't know! I've been a victim of something similar, and it's not something anybody wants to deal with.

Matt

[OldHoosier62]

Call the police...let them sort it out.

[Evil D]

Yeah step 1 is don't put $300 in anything except your pocket, or just don't carry around that kind of cash in the first place. It's obviously one of the workers, and personally I wouldn't work around a bunch of thieves so I'd find another job. Beyond that, calling the police is probably the easiest way. You may never get your money back but it may put the fear into whoever is doing it and get it stopped.

[Ankerson]

#1 rule is never trust anyone when it comes to money.

[Chinook3]

Call the police...let them sort it out.

Ditto-

[Cliff Stamp]

Matt,

At a job your girlfriend has a supervisor, it is her responsibility, among other things to ensure a safe work environment. It is your girlfriends job, among other things, to ensure that she does her part. I am not sure of the laws where you are, but here, in Canada you would be obligated to do a number of things :

-report it to your immediate supervisor
-if they don't take reasonable action continue up the chain
-report it to the local authorities

At first though, take all precautions to ensure that the money was in fact stolen.

In the future, don't make yourself a target. In many work environments with young and high turn over rates for employees the chance of theft and similar is very high. Take reasonable steps to protect yourself. In many work environments if you just left $300 in cash out with high employee turn overs and no cameras it is not unlikely it would disappear.

[jujigatame]

Agreed that she should file a police report (and hopefully the other victim does the same) and make a formal complaint with her boss. She should also ask the boss about installing cameras. It would be good to do this via email in addition to verbally so that there is a record of it happening. Lastly, don't keep that cash anywhere but on your person. If that's not practical then don't take the chance of carrying it if it can be avoided.

One thing I'm curious about is how many people work there. I know daycare operations vary in size but assuming these thefts took place in a spot that only employees would routinely access we're not talking about a huge group of people who could have done it, right?

[MattM68]

Thanks guys! I really just posted this so people would be aware of what can happen if you aren't careful enough. I understand that she could have been more careful, but now that it happened, she just has to learn from it. I just wanted to see if anybody had any advice for her. She talked to the supervisor, and I believe the supervisor told the local police about what happened. I'm not 100% sure on the details right now.

Just thought I should add that she normally never has more than $40 cash on her, but she stopped by the bank a couple days ago, and never took the cash out of the wallet.

Matt

[MattM68]

Agreed that she should file a police report (and hopefully the other victim does the same) and make a formal complaint with her boss. She should also ask the boss about installing cameras. It would be good to do this via email in addition to verbally so that there is a record of it happening. Lastly, don't keep that cash anywhere but on your person. If that's not practical then don't take the chance of carrying it if it can be avoided.

One thing I'm curious about is how many people work there. I know daycare operations vary in size but assuming these thefts took place in a spot that only employees would routinely access we're not talking about a huge group of people who could have done it, right?

There is one employee for every 4 kids. I'm not sure exactly how many were there, but probably not any more than 4 or 5.

Matt

[jujigatame]

Yeah, that's an extra lousy feeling when it's a small group and you know someone stole.

[The Deacon]

Yeah, that's an extra lousy feeling when it's a small group and you know someone stole.

But can she be sure it was a fellow employee. The kids may be too young, but do the parents, delivery persons, or other non-employees have access to the area from which the items were stolen?

Reporting it to the police, and taking the precautions mentioned, is the best course of action.

We men do have it easier when it comes to protecting our valuables at work. Our wallets generally remain in our pockets, but women's handbags usually wind up getting stashed somewhere.

[SpyderNut]

I agree with the recommendation of calling the local authorities. It may be too late to recover the missing cash, but perhaps safeguards can be put into place to prevent future issues.

Quick story:
Several years ago, my wife was filling in for a fellow teacher at our local middle school. She wasn't very familiar with most of the kids, but she still felt comfortable enough to keep her purse behind her desk in an unlocked drawer. Long story short, she had $200 cash from her purse. She filed a report with the school and also the police, but basically it was a lost cause. Never did find put who took it. Lesson learned.

Another quick story:
Back when I was in college, I once had my wallet stolen from my truck--in broad daylight. (My truck was sitting in the driveway of my own home. It was unlocked). I lost my driver's license, about $150 in cash, my concealed carry permit, and my credit card. I later discovered that it was my best friend who took the wallet. I never confronted him because I was very disappointed that he would do such a thing. He now an ex-best friend.

My point is, I never--and I mean never--leave a window of opportunity for someone to take advantage of me. I lock my car and house every single time I leave them for even a moment. It's sad that one must take such precautions, but this is the world that we live in...

[paladin]

nothing like a thief to shake your confidence in your fellow man :mad: ...my condolences

report it to the police & make it public & widespread that you done so...if it is an employee that's the thief, perhaps it will send the message that your girlfriend will not play the part of the helpless victim, and as a bonus-- they might actually solve the caper :cool:

at the very least, she's followed proper protocol :)

[akaAK]

"but here, in Canada you would be obligated to do a number of things :

-report it to your immediate supervisor
-if they don't take reasonable action continue up the chain
-report it to the local authorities"


I believe that this information is not factual. There is no obligation to do these things in Canada. While reasonable and responsible it is not an obligation.

[Monocrom]

+1 on calling the police.

Also, I'm surprised as **** the place has no cameras. It would be a big help if a parent ever claimed their child was hurt or abused at Daycare. At the very least, workers should have lockers. Would prevent theft. Sounds like she's working at an amateur operation. Plus, can't rule out the older kids. A 5 year-old can work a purse zipper and take money out of a wallet, along with being clever enough to hide it.

She might be better off not carrying money on her. A debit card (especially an aftermarket one that isn't an ATM card too) would be one solution. She carry one card, hide it on her person or just keep it in a pocket, always have it on her, and make even small purchases with it.

[RexGig0]

Unattended purses are targets of theft, everywhere in the world, even in the "nice" parts of the most civilized areas. I am amazed that anyone would think otherwise. Yes, it will vary, to a degree, depending upon the local culture, but theft is everywhere.

Thieves can be some of the most charming people, least likely to be expected, and very good at detecting the right moment to strike undetected. Others will simply be bold, and brazenly steal, knowing that being apprehended is unlikely. Many, if not most thieves know that being eventually caught is likely, but their impulse control is poor.

[tvenuto]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned already, but beware the employee who originally reported the money stolen! $300 seems like a lot to be carrying around, and as the first "victim" he/she may be attempting to throw people off the scent. This goes double if he/she complained loudly, and to everyone, and described many things about the theft/exactly where the money was etc, and yet failed to do anything formal such as call the police or file a report with supervisors/HR etc. A surfeit of details often hides an untruth!

[MattM68]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned already, but beware the employee who originally reported the money stolen! $300 seems like a lot to be carrying around, and as the first "victim" he/she may be attempting to throw people off the scent. This goes double if he/she complained loudly, and to everyone, and described many things about the theft/exactly where the money was etc, and yet failed to do anything formal such as call the police or file a report with supervisors/HR etc. A surfeit of details often hides an untruth!

I actually had the same thoughts. It seems unlikely though, since the first employee who had $300 stolen is apparently now quitting her job at the daycare. Once she found out about what happened to my girlfriend, she decided that was enough. Im out of town until Saturday, so it's hard to keep up with the whole story.

Matt

[Studey]

Or she's quitting to be out of there and not have to be around those people now that there's been official complaints and the police are involved....