Good question. There are four broad categories for reasons why staff will conduct fraud and theft.

3. Deep seated disgruntled or dissatisfied feeling.

The employee feels unappreciated or slighted in some way. At times employees may feel slighted for completely illogical reasons. “I took vacation and did not receive the holiday bonus given to those working Christmas Eve.” While the employee made the choice to take vacation on a day he or she was needed, the employee still felt entitled to the same bonus given to those who worked.

A different example was the man who worked for at a department store for many years, but “fell through the cracks” and was not given regular performance reviews. For 5 years this employee did not receive a performance review or a raise in pay, and he felt entitled to the free merchandise he took home each day.

A common rationalisation is : “The business is making heaps of profit and I’m only taking what’s really due to me for my hard work”.

A senior retail manager offers this advice: “I’ve always felt that theft mostly results from disgruntled staff. If people feel downtrodden or exploited they’re going to take it out on you somehow, and theft is the easiest option”.