Employee stealing from a food bank

[QQWWEERRTTTYYY]

NC'd for this. I run a food bank. I have a (paid) assistant Mary, along with lots of volunteers. My assistant used to be a volunteer, for context, but this is now her first proper job. She's on the autistic spectrum but very high-functioning. She is due to leave at the end of this month (travel, then uni). She's 19.

Anyway - I'm pretty sure she's stealing stock. Not donations from the public, but corporate type donations - bulk packs of biscuits, crisps etc. Always treat-y things rather than the (many) more mundane foods we have. Eg we receive two boxes of Dairy Milk at 2pm on Monday, I see them on the shelf, I head off at 3.30 and leave Mary there to finish whatever task - and when I come back in at 7 the next morning, one of the boxes is open and two large bars are missing. That sort of thing, again and again. On some of these occasions other people are in too, but the common denominator is Mary (and she'd always be the one in last/locking up). It's also extended to leaving the wrappers lying around on occasion, which is both dumb and infuriating.

Lives at home in a very well-off house, no expenses/money issues, no shortage of food - I'm quite certain. It feels, instinctively, like "teenage bottomless pit" type behaviour.

So:
Catch her out definitively?
Give her a vague but pointed chat about our stock and what it's for?
Say something before I wave her off at the end of the month?
Ignore?
Some other thing?

I don't think the value of what she's stealing is any great shakes, but a) really, who the hell steals from a food bank? b) theft is theft c) I trained her up and gave her a brilliant opportunity with this job, so I find it quite hurtful. I also would rather she learn her lesson now rather than when she's, I dunno, Chancellor of the Exchequer.

I don't have any other managers etc to bounce this off. I have trustees, who I suspect will leave it with me to make a decision as I see fit. WWYD?

Just say to her either, 'please don't eat any of the donations' or 'It's fine to have a bar of chocolate or a couple of biscuits if you want to. You don't need to 'catch' her. You don't need to put her in a situation where she feels she has to lie. You don't need to prove it with a video. What happened to common humanity? It's a couple of bloody chocolate bars. She's got issues, Sherlock and you should leave it alone.

Hi @QQWWEERRTTTYYY I have a HF autistic son. Don't even think about trying to be subtle or oblique. Trying to catch someone out with a camera is asking for trouble. I'd suggest a 121 with the clear message that if she gets caught she will lose her job but back that up with something positive.

if not, does op point her finger at the person who is?
people can eat treats and not be overweight you know.

I have a teen with ASD who can eat & eat chocolate & biscuits & doesn’t stop until they are gone. they have hollow legs so I’ve taken to not buying them or hiding them if I do!

Yes completely agree and it has been reported several times but nothing ever changes unfortunately. The rest of us just continue to feed them whenever we have the opportunity. I have no doubt that if the family were low income or living in different circumstances it would be taken more seriously by the authorities

ED and autism are red-herrings really. If she is taking stuff that doesn’t belong to her that’s theft. For publicity and reputation reasons you may not want to make a song and dance about it but you could quietly let her go. Does she have less than two years’ service?

Could she have an eating disorder?

not legal without a lot of declarations, insurance and notices

Nobody said that people with autism lie convincingly. I'm surround by autistic family member and everyone of them has lied to me on numerous occasions, some massive whoppers trying to cover their own arses. Most of the time the lies are completely transparent and I know from the off they are lying but just because they are shit liars it doesn't mean the intention to deceive isn't there.

don't think the value of what she's stealing is any great shakes, but a) really, who the hell steals from a food bank? b) theft is theft c) I trained her up and gave her a brilliant opportunity with this job, so I find it quite hurtful.

To answer (c) first - don't take it personally. As for (a) and (b) - the person who steals items of treat food (not a box of chocolate bars but a couple of bars) from a food bank probably has poor impulse control and/or an eating disorder. The fact that some people who have autism would never steal does not rule out that other people may be more likely to steal as a result of their autism. Sometimes it's like a 10 year old taking things and assuming no-one knows or thinking it's OK because no-one said it wasn't.

Since she has autism and reacts badly to personal criticism, first give her a concrete but impersonal chat about your stock and what it is for. Tell her very explicitly that no-one who works there is allowed to take any, that it must all go to the clients and not to the staff. And tell her that taking any of this food is stealing, and what the consequences would be if she is caught - not being allowed to carry on volunteering, getting a bad reference, calling the police if that's what you would do, whatever. Don't imply she's been rumbled, say it's because she's new and you want to make sure she knows all the rules. If you imply that you know she is doing it but you've let her get away with it then she might not understand you are being kind, instead she might think it's OK and carry on (my experience of ASCs).

when you returned there was y number left and ask her of she can explain where the remaining stock has gone?

I would save that until after I had given the clear warning and instructions above. She might not be able to just admit the truth or to make up a plausible excuse/lie either, and backing her into a corner is not a good idea. You would need to plan what would you do if she flat out denied it or told an obvious lie.

You sound like a good manager. Sorry you're having to deal with this!

"I'm heading off now - there might be a call come in from head office, I've asked if we can have cameras fitted as unfortunately it seems like a staff member is stealing stock. Awful really - who STEALS from a FOOD BANK?!! Dreadful. Right, see you later..."

Doubt very much she'll do it again. Anywhere. Plus you won't have ruined her future.

If she is going at the end of the month in the grand scheme of things it doesn't really matter, but.......... it would be a very important lesson for a 19 year old to learn in a relatively safe/low impact (on her) environment that you just don't do/get away with stealing and there are consequences including potentially getting sacked for gross misconduct and knowing you have let people and yourself down.

Treat her like any other employee in terms of disapline.

Ask if she knows what happened to chocolate.

In staff meeting state CCTV will be installed as treat food keeps going missing.

Hopefully if she knows CCTV is up she will stop.

Have you had a very clear conversation with her that none of the donations are to be taken or eaten? It was always a little grey as to what was permissable in the food bank I volunteered with. They would tell us we weren't to take anything and then we would see employees come and help themselves to a treat. Occasionally they would offer us goods or open up a donation on the table for everyone to share. Occasionally they would say they were overflowing in X and say someone should take that home etc. There were just a lot of off the cuff mixed message comments from various employees over the course of time - and for someone with autism, if your food bank has a similar environment where there are rules but they aren't always the rule....that might be hard to make sense of.

Pretty simple, no need for drama, just say you've noticed some items missing, say that we aren't allowed to take anything for ourselves.

She's young and not thinking, probably thinks it's all donations so it's ok. Not to mention the ND.

No need for a sting operation.

She may have someone who is taking advantage of her being there…’oh grab me some nice bits from your food bank thingy’.
Or she could have befriended one of the food bank customers and is giving them/their kids extra bits?

This isn't uncommon behaviour for a teenage girl with autism. There can be a disconnect from knowing that it is wrong and feeling that it is wrong. My DD was doing something similar and it was the behaviour that ultimately led to her getting diagnosed. That said, you can't let it go. You have to spell it out to her clearly that taking food is not acceptable.and what the consequences will be if she does. Then follow through.

It doesn't matter if she's leaving soon, she's stealing and if you can prove it, I'd sack her.

If shes not will ing to admit to it, then I'd engineer a situation where she can't refute the evidence and then sack her

I agree. One of the best things I learned from a boss years ago when I was in my first management position, is that if you have a problem with one staff member, don't make it about all of them. You do have to be sure who the culprit is, though, before you proceed.

How do you know its her? Every one is quick to blame her, maybe some ones friend wants her paid job.

In my mind, the issue you have here is one of internal control - she has access to the stockroom on her own after you have left at 3:30. This opens up the opportunity to steal - it might be Mary this time, but it is likely to happen again if people have access alone.

You need to have some kind of control here, so perhaps she doesn’t have access at all whilst you are not there. Or there’s a lock and only she has the combination lock/key and the door must be locked every time she leaves it. Or perhaps there must always be two people in the store room at one time (doesn’t completely avoid the issue but makes it harder).

That way, if things go missing it must be her, either because she’s taken them, or she’s breached the control (giving somebody else the key or something), and then you can discipline her.

If you can’t prove it’s her it’s difficult to accuse her directly, but telling her about the new policy let’s her know that you know it was her, if that makes sense.

You don't need to blame her, instead do this.

Put up a sign in the stores cupboard.
Stock is not for consummation.
Please be mindful of this fact, Thank you.

discrete set up an old phone and get some video evidence on what exactly has gone on. She needs to be confronted with evidence. If not tell her directly you’ve noticed a lot of treats going missing and you’re inclined to make it a police matter.

Never assume anything. There is always a reason or an explanation for everything.

Why is there this supposition that anyone on the spectrum can't understand right from wrong, and tell barefaced lies? It's not the case.