Suspended from work due to allegation of theft

[carolinej32 10]

i have recently been suspended from work regarding theft of a bottle of coke which i didnt purposley do. i have worked at the pub for 4 n half years and absolutly love ma job an dont know what id do if i got sacked it would destroy me! i had a disciplinary this morning and discussed the situation and then we ajourned n i was left waiting an hour b4 they called me back in to tell me that they still had made no decision and would have to let me know through the post and that i would find out roughly tuesday time but until them i am stil suspended with pay! im going out of my mind with worry n just dont know what to do i have apologised and explained the situation to them but feel i am going to get sacked and hate that i wil have to find out in the post rather than face to face if anyone can give me any advice please help x x

[simyeo 10]

youd be better off out of there, just had the same situation at beggining of aug, greedy ,nasty stards. ps i was the manager!!!!!!!!!!!!

[indizine 10]

Is it really over a bottle of coke? Have there been other things they could have noticed and not done anything about and have lost their patience with this 'offence'? It just seems harsh that's all.

[carolinej32 10]

yeh i have never done anything else wrong at all and nothing else was mentioned ma manager even sed its hard for her to make a decision becase i have worked for them fr a long time n that so yeh its jus bout a bottle of coke im proper gutted but i need to know if they can actually do that send u away afta a disciplinary saying they will let u know in the post x

[indizine 10]

Well this is it, depends what procedure they followed. Did you get a formal letter to attend the disciplinary with sufficient notice? Did it say in the letter that you could be accompanies by a colleague or union rep?

 

When they make a decision in writing they also need to inform you in the letter that you have the right to appeal. But yes, they are OK to do this in writing and to be fair making a decision within an hour is too quick given the circ's.

 

It's hardly till theft though. That's like someone who works in an office who photocopies their passport on the works copier. Technically they are stealing the paper and ink! And the ones who pop a work pen (supplied form work) in their bag and take it home (and worth £1 or less) never to return it but not 'on purpose' as a theft of course. So we should ask, what is the difference here?

 

If it was a crate of coke or a ream of copier paper then fair do's. I would sack. But i'd never have sacked my staff for taking a bottle of pop when we worked in a bar for god's sake! I'd have said, please ask in future, or take it and pop the money or an IOU in the till - basically declare it then pay for it soon! You have been given one warning and it would be put on file.

 

You dont say under what circ's you took it for us to know how innocent it was but to work in a bar then to help yourself to a bottle of pop would seem very harsh. Unless of course they have another agenda and have pounced on this as an opportunity to end your employment - are they struggling in the recession and dont want to pay redundancy perhaps?

 

And maybe the reason they have delayed the outcome is to make sure they are not doing anything wrong and maybe they need time to get consultation on it before making a decision which cost them more than the bottle of pop if you did take them to a tribunal.

 

All disciplinaries need to be considered seriousoly and the circ's of the offence taken into account.

Edited September 3, 2010 by indizine

[carolinej32 10]

they suspended me on wednesday and gave me a letter then for ma disciplinary that i had this mornin and it did also say on the letter that i could have someone with me. on monday i had the coke which i thought i had already paid for it was busy and got my money and then got distracted and was busy making desserts so i then went to get my drink i would never do anything on purpose and was sure id paid for it it was a accident. x

[indizine 10]

I would say their procedure sounds OK then. How did they know you had taken it and not paid? How was this 'theft' discovered and what was your reaction when approached with the matter?

 

The only time it wont seem too harsh is if they already have a strict policy that staff should not help themselves to drinks even if they plan to put the money in later. What is their policy on this anyway, you dont say?

[carolinej32 10]

one of the other staff mentioned it to the bar supervisor and it eneded up being talked about amongst the bar staff and 4 of them made statements all bout the same day and wen they asked me about it the manager that is i sed straight away im sure i paid for it but if i havent it isnt intentional and they couldnt find any proof on the matter hence y i got the disciplinary! they do have a ploicy on not taking drinks unless paid for and i do understand the policy but i was unaware that i hadnt already paid for it! in the disciplinary i said all this and apologised for any trouble and upset i may have caused i just cant bear the thought that i wil b sacked and the more n more im startin to think that i am gonna b x x

[mjr2000 10]

This may sound harsh, but staff retail theft amounts to £426 million each year.

Now it may have been a simple oversight, but this could be the company dealing with this in a final straw kind of way. This may have gone on unnoticed for some time, possibly other staff members.

There will be some that say "it was only a bottle of coke" , but if that was a 200ml bottle of coke at say £1 each, thats £5 per litre.

Even petrol is only £1.20 per litre and we all think that is expensive.

[carolinej32 10]

i totally understand y they have had to take the action they have but i jus need to know what the decision is so i can deal with it, i appreciate the honesty though so thanx for ur reply i do totally understand i jus hope that i can be given another chance and i doubt it will make a difference saying that to the manager but i have done n hope she takes it into consideration how much i love working there n how much hard work i put into the pub x

[indizine 10]

That's why the circ's and the policy etc need weighing up as its not always as black and white as it may sound.

 

Back to the policy, if you kow it should be paid for when taken, then really you knew that you had to make a payment there and then just like in a shop. If you are in a shop and yourr rushing cos your busy then your mobile rings and you get distracted you would never walk out the shop with the pop unpaid for. Same here I guess.

 

So what stopped you at the point you were at the cabinet taking out the bottle with money in hand/purse/pocket?

 

Why didnt you pay the money there and then?

 

What was this urgent distraction that was more important than paying for the drink?

 

Bearing in mind how many seconds it takes to put said money into whereveer it goes, (till, hand to bar staff, or whatever) your excuse for not paying will have to hold water. ie a fire drill, an emergency, etc. it cant be that you just got called away. That won't wash.

 

That said, if you have always paid for your pop on many occasions over 4.5 yrs and always paid and just this once never did, then I still think all things considered, it is harsh. Unless of course, as ive already said, there is another reason.

[XPrincessX 10]

I had a very similar situation last week. I was in a car crash on July 17th and had to have 3 weeks off. I need 1 hour a week off for aftercare of my injuries. Last week a car nearly took me off the road as i was on my way to work. Scared the hell out of me and i still went to work. Went, broke down into a huge panic attack (something i couldnt control) and then i find out that afternoon when they sent me home, that i was sacked...i found out on FACEBOOK! By someone who wasn't in my team, and he just heard in passing. Noone else knew about the situation, so it wasnt untill i went back to work the next day, that i found out they were "letting me go" for my own health reasons and because i had too much time off!...sorry but i find that incredibly unfair.

 

No employer is going to want to take someone on who needs at least a little time a week off for the next 8 weeks. Work said they can re-employ me, but it will be around late october/november time, without pay.

 

What am i supposed to do?. I am on a tempary contract yet i dont know if i have a leg to stand on. I feel utterly humiliated and victimised...

 

Sorry if it seems like i stole the tread, just thought they would have been merged anyway...

 

If they sack you hon, you are better off without them. 4 1/2 years and this is how they treat you. Leave them before they let you go. Hope it all goes well sweets xxx