O/T - Shop Owners... Need positive feedback.

Today SUCKED.

Caught an employee stealing from me today. Guys been with us two years. Not really bright but hasn't missed a single day in 26 months. Does average work- nothing spectacular. Noticed some things missing and he fessed up. (had an idea it was him). Fired him.

What I need is some positive feed back that you would have done the same thing.

What really sucks - This guy has a 3yo that just had a seizure last week. They don't know why. His wife is gonna whip his ass. I don't really care about him so much but his family is now going to be pretty much screwed.

In 15 years I've never actually caught someone stealing from me but I always tell people that if I do, there are no second chances. I sort of had to fire him.

How do others deal with these situations, knowing that he just made it so much harder on his family?

FUCK.


Did I mention today SUCKED?

 

Look at it this way, if he stole from you he stole from your family.Hopfully that might set your mind at ease a little.

 

You did the right thing by firing him, hes lucky you didnt get any authorities involoved. What was he stealing if you dont mind my asking? And his family should be fine. I just hope he is ok after his wife gets to him.

 

Man I know the way your feeling now, after 27 yrs of being service manager the one thing that always was a for sure deal was if you steal you go. caring about his family shows what a good person you are and what a good boss you are, but a deal is a deal and unless you think he could come back with out any more problems then it is best to leave it at that. Shows that the old saying , this is gonna hurt me more than you applies here also. My advise is consider your options with him and his value to you and and go from there, good luck and He is lucky to have you as an employer. it is a shame he didn't see that before this happened .............good luck been there /

 

I've always figured "You don't shit where you eat." That mentality also applies to bangin' female coworkers, because I figured that could cause a problem, too.

 

I had to be part of having a lady fired, she has 3 kids w/ child support payments, etc. She kept mis-using company equipment, driving them all over on personal use (f-450's) and not replacing the used fuel. After 6 months of constantly asking her to please stop or pay for the fuel ($150.00 per tank of fuel), she finally started not showing up early in the morning on Monday's to return the trucks when the construction crews could take them to the job sites. Finally she had to sign a letter saying should stop using company equipment for personal use. She shows up at 0830 w/ a truck that was supposed to be out on a job site at 0630. There were 3 guys standing around waiting for that truck and a very furious site super. Had to let her go that day, it sucks, but you have to draw a hard line on stuff like this, or it will keep happening. Why is it when you have to enforce something you feel so hollow? she was asked to stop, given multiple chances, and still she would not change.

And next question how are you going to handle it when some one calls and asks for a reference on previous employment.

 

Owned my own shop for over 20 years. You did the right thing. It's hard, I know, but people that steal, for what ever reason, hurt everyone else there, and the customers. If he had a problem, It sounds as if you would have listened. Enough said.

 

hey life sucks but you got to do what you got to do, you can't employ a theif. HE DUG HIS OWN GRAVE!!! you told him the consequences if that happened. youre a man of your word.

 

Still have a shop, have some simple rules. Steal from me, I will fire your ass (many times after I kick it). This includes timeclock theft. If you do something that I tell you NOT TO DO directly, you get to fix it on your own time. If you are sick or will be late or whatever, CALL IN. Simple rules, but the first is written in stone. You made the right call.

 

You did the right thing, think of it this way. How much other stuff (time, ect.) has he stolen where you did'nt catch him.
I've had to fire many people and its never easy.

 

thanks for reminding me why I never hired anyone....

 

If he was stealing money or equipment, then that's a no-brainer. If it was little stuff, like paint and supplies and shit like that, make sure your employees know that if they need some cutoff wheels or sandpaper or some bullshit like that, that you'll sell them some at cost or whatever. Or if someone needs to borrow a tool, let them know it's OK as long as they bring it back for business hours. Letting your guys know that the stuff they need is within reach is a good way to keep them from stealing it from you.

 

I will GIVE my employees anything they ASK for, as long as they ASK....but I'll fire a thief with absolutely no remorse. There is no excuse for stealing from your place of work. I take it personally because I consider anybody that works with me to be family in a sense, and you don't STEAL from your family
I even didn't hire a guy who I knew to be very talented and I needed him,because I knew he had been stealing materials from his previous employer

A grown man's supposed to know right from wrong. He did wrong. You did right. Stop beating yourself up worrying about his family---that was HIS responsibility.

 

You did the right thing. It isn't easy being the boss, If it were, everyone would be doing it. Anyone stealing from your company is reaching into your wallet and pulling out dollar bills. You worrying about his family just shows you have a heart, but he is the one screwing them over by stealing and losing his job......You did the right thing. Shaun.

 

firing is tough, i have 3 biz's and have fired quite a few, unfourtunately its part of the game. but it seems that you have to weed them out over a couple of years till you get your "dream" team of guys, ones that treat your place like it was their own, its tough and hard to achieve at times, but NOT impossible.

firing is just business. it happens, and you definately cant have someone stealing. remember its not personal from you its business, but HE made it personal for himself by risking his families security by stealing from you!

 

I'm not a shop owner, but I've had to keep an eye on the family business working w/ my dad. Close enough?

I had to fire a sales lady who wasn't performing. After we canned her, we got the phone bill (which was a month late...) that had almost A GRAND in personal long distance calls on it. That shit came straight outa' Dad's pocket.

First garage I worked at had a guy who started skimming a couple bucks a day out of the till. They booted his ass without hesitation. Boss told me that most theives only steal a little bit at a time, and it's usually (only usually) the guy who whines about being broke.

IMHO, any asshole who'll steal a buck or two is only a set of balls away from an asshole who'll steal a million or two. I was just reading about this in a small biz magazine while at the dentist's today; some poor bastard who does flooring got jacked for $69K by his bookkeeper (a trusted employee). Took her a while - probably woulda' took a million with enough time.

As far as your employee's kid having seziures, I wouldn't worry about it - unless you're the cause. All the more reason for the dumb fucker to keep his nose clean. I agree with the guy who said something about 'don't shit where you eat', but I think it goes further than that. If I work for someone for a couple years, I must like 'em at least a bit. If I didn't, well, my toolbox has wheels. So if I was ripping off someone I'd worked with for years, that means I'm ripping off someone who I should have developed some trust with. That's extra low.

And besides, if you decided to turn a blind eye to some jackalope employee stealing from you, what's going to keep him from hosing your other employees, and your customers? Don't those people deserve to be protected from this asshole?

Anyway, maybe this will be a wakeup call for this turd. You sound like you are probably a pretty good guy to work with; if the theif has a brain in his head, he may realize that his mistake wasn't getting caught, but fucking someone who was willing to help him out.

Gotta' draw the line somewhere, and I think you drew it right!

 

I think there is a difference between a thief and a guy who fucked up. Both usually end up in being fired though.

I don't know what he stole or why he stole it, but did he have any excuse, did you talk to him about it ? has he been stealing from you for the last 2 years or just this one time?

i'm asking you because you said his kid had a seizure last week, is there any chance that this is out of character for him and he's freaking out about family shit and not thinking straight ? [ i doubt it, but you gotta take everything into consideration, 2 years is a long time to work for someone and then get busted stealing ]

Even with all those factors its hard to keep someone once they mess up like that.

I agree with the fact that you fired him, i would have done the same . . . . . . . .. as hard as that would be. That sucks man.

L

 

Thanks guy's. I have no problem firing people. Done it for years. I wouldn't say that I enjoy it by any means but it just has to be done sometimes.

What he stole isn't important. It was stuff the company had bought.



Hey, I appreciate the kind words.

 

When my dad ran his business, he had a simple rule, "Steal a dime; steal a dollar, it's STILL THEFT!; and YOU ARE FIRED!"

 

Basic rules of life.... stealing is wrong. Your decision was difficult, but right.

It shows you have a heart which means you were probably the best boss he has ever had.

 

When a company "steals" from an employee they call it a POLICY CHANGE and we all think it's OK.

When a person steals from you and admits it - I guess you'd call that an "honest thief"

When a person steals from you - looks you square in the eye and lies about it - they call him/her a POLITICIAN.

Rarely is the world so BLACK and WHITE - nice thought but rare indeed.

At my company I caught a fella red handed who was stealing my pop out of the fridge. I confronted the person and made quite a stir when I did. (It was hysterical -from my point of view since he was probably 20 years my senior). I've also had high roller SALESMEN in our company steal my lunch. In none of these cases did the company take action of ANY sort. So I took matters in my own hands. Funny how the COMPANY'S perspective is quite different when the theft was against them. So much for black and white.

You also mention "stealing hours" - company's do that too!!! They call it SALARY.

Living in a Black and White world has it's benefits - but THAT ax swings BOTH ways be careful you're never on the opposite end.

AS far as your decision - I have no idea if it was "right" or not - matter of fact I have no opinion on it since I wasn't there.

You either made the right call in your heart or you didn't - only you can determine that.

 

I never felt bad about firing people. Good employees are worth keeping, and I'd do anything to help em. Bad employees make your life hell. They're like light bulbs.... If they dont work, screw in another one...

 

I fired my 1st employee for running his mouth and not knowing when to shut up. Stealing is way bad.

You did the right thing! His family is not your responsibility, your business and your own family is.

 

I have to agree.
I had to fire a guy for "fudging" his hours. SUCKED! I had confronted him on the issue several times and it finally came down to brass tacks when I timed him on a project and he billed me almost 7 and 1/2 hours over what it took him! thats a little over 100 bucks, but when you take into account how tight our budget is, 20 bucks is way too much.

We take care of our guys in ways that are pretty much unheard of by todays standards. we pay a salary (because of this happening)but we also provide uniforms, feed the techs, and they know if they need help and we can give it, it is thiers.
it is also well known that theft is simply unnacceptable. with very few exceptions, what is mine is thiers and if they ask, they shall receive.

Theivery in all of its forms sucks. You did not put a gun to this guys head and make him steal. I don't know the circumstances behind it, but it sounds like you were pushed beyond your limits, and reacted very well to it, assuming the guy is not currently hospitalized.

 

WHILE I DO NOT OWN AN AUTO SHOP I DO HAVE A PLUMBING COMPANY AND RAN INTO A SIMILAR THING INCLUDING THE EMPLOYEE HAVING A BABY DAUGHTER LIKE ME BUT A FEW MONTHS YOUNGER. I WOULD ALWAYS GIVE HIM THINGS FOR HIS KID AS MINE GREW OUT AS I KNEW TIMES WERE RUFF FOR THEM HAVING JUST MOVED DOWN FROM N.Y.. ONE DAY AFTER STAYING OUT ALL NITE WITH MY TRUCK AND HIS WIFE CALLING ME ABOUT 4 AM I DECIDED TO PICK UP MY TRUCK AS SOON AS HE RETURNED HOME THAT MORNING. A DAY OR TWO LATER HIS WIFE CALLS SAYS HE'S IN THE HOSPITAL AND SHE HAS NO MONEY FOR FOOD FOR HER CHILD .I OFFER TO BRING HER SOME OF MY DAUGHTER'S FORMULA TO WHICH SHE REPLIED I JUST NEED MONEY F.U . IF YOU WON'T BRING ME CASH. AT THIS POINT I KNEW I WAS BEING PLAYED ONCE AGAIN OFFERED HER FOOD FOR HER DAUGHTER AND THEN HUNG UP WHEN SHE PROCEEDED TO SCREAM AT ME. bOTTOM LINE FROM ME IS HE'S WRONG FOR STEALING AND SHOULD BE LET GO IF YOU FEEL BAD FOR HIS KID SROP OFF SOME FORMULA OR DIAPERS OR WHATEVER JUST FOR THE KID AND KNOW THAT YOU DID THE RIGHT THING

 

I hired a guy to run my beer stand at the first race track that I ran. I thought he was a pretty good guy...always came to work on raceday....did a good job. We sold TAP beer...no cans...also NO CONTROL.

The second year I canned him 'cuz one of the other people in the stand saw him stuff a wad of $$$ in his pants. After he was gone and I got a trusted friend to take over, my sales SOARED!

I figure this snaked over $27,000 from me in a little over 18 race dates....BIG lesson learned...

Oh yeah...he remodeled his house and paid cash...what's THAT tell ya...

 

one of my favorite sayings is "stupidity should be painful". well this goof is hurting now. Also i believe that you harvest what you plant and are responsible for your own actions and he paid the consequences of his own actions.

you did the right thing,but it still sucks! the next guy might be the best employee of all time. this is the oportunity to find the next (god forgive me)"jesse james" or jimmy shine.

 

Srew me once,Shame on you, Screw me twice, Shame on me!!!!!

Don't ever let the above happen to you as I did in the past.
My company is a small company, I have very few paid workers with me.
I had a trusted "gal pal" who started this company with me. I used ta let her handle all of the shirt sales, I used to keep cash in envelopes for the hard parts vs apparel that we would make over the weekend. We basically only do 2 shows a year. Well on the next business day I inquired as to where the money was that we had made She replied that in was in the acct.
I didn't really give it anymore thought until I went to pay for our next order of shirts & it was short. I asked her about it & the receipt that was supposed to be in the file=not there.
Now my deal was not as cut & dry as most as this was a relaionship also. Gave her another chance, (she never did handle the money again though.) But the trust factor was never the same, brought someone else in to manage the apparel end things & money is now straight.
fazed the prior girl out in all areas & now I'm much better off.
The previous girl would have had it made if she'd played her cards right.
She spent the profits as did I building something again from the ground up only to screw up in the end. I'm far from making any real money on this deal as most $ goes right back in the company. I believe the temptation is too great for most people to pass up. I for one will not take w/o inquiring 1st. & as I get older I want & need less & less. Having a business is supposed to be less stressful, because the individual is the one in control. Always remember that.
You did the right thing, He will bounce back and hopefully for his familys sake he learned a valuable lesson in life pertaining to truth or consequences.
If this were a 3rd world country-he wouldn't have a hand anymore.
Just my take on the situation. Now here is the other side.
BTW- I as a 17yr kid worked @ a gas station, I was the new guy so some of the other employees would come in on my shift and take cash out of the drawer & get gas. The deal was that they were supposed to sign for it with a credit receipt & put it in the drop. Well this would generally happen when I was checking oil fluids in the full serve side and super busy. They'd clear the pump b4 I'd geta chance to sign them out & take off. Well since I was the new guy I took the fall, for missing cash & gas.
Lil did the other employees know that everytime I started a shift I did a cash count & pump reading followed that up @ the end shift & jotted down who came in & got cash & gas. Found the amounts of shortgages and documented them. When I went to pick up my check & drop off my keys. I handed my boss the documented losses. He couldn't give me my job back, but he now knew how to watch his losses.
About a year later he sold his station-came in to where I was working to purchase a part & thanked me for the list as the same thing happened to the next guy that he had hired, but now he cleaned house.

 

so that sucks but if u need any help ill def work for any of u guys pay means nothing just want to learn and listen



thanks eric

 

As to the references question:

If the guy is stupid enough (or a scammer that knows his way around and is trying to set you up for a lawsuit) to give your name as a past employer or refence, you MUST be very careful what you say (you can never be sure who is on the other end of a received phone call) and NEVER send a written reply without checking with a lawyer. Since the theft was never reported to the authorities, mistake # 1 to protect yourself you should report all crimes even if you do not press charges, you are in a very delicate situation. I would say to the person asking about the former employee that personel records are private and that you can only verify that the person was employed by you and you cannot give a positive recommendation. Stop there! even if pressed for details.
Most legitimate employers will understand your refusal to provide details for what it is and not push further.
BTDT

On the "galpal" post: Consider yourself VERY LUCKY she didn't decide to file a sexual harassment suit!
Ex emploees will sue at the drop of a hat today since the costs involved in defending yourself is so great and their rights are much greater than yours you'll likely settle than fight, especially if an insurance co. is involved.