CircleSquare

Years ago I worked at a Ben Franklin. I remember one lady who bought fabric and had it all folded up. At the cash register, thanks to the diligence of the employee, a lot of merchandise was found inside the folded fabric! But we never had employees stealing that I know of. It was a small town and the employees in that store were like a family.

Johanna Fritz

I was a JoAnns employee over Christmas here in WI years ago. It was policy that our purse's or bags were checked each day as we left the store. When I was the last one out of the store with the Mgr, she checked mine and I checked hers. They let you know this policy when you start. Frankly, I think most retail businesses have some version of this policy. It is just good business. You cannot imagine how much money is lost to employee theft each year.

CircleSquare

When I worked at JoAnn's in 1995, the employees would show one another their purses when they went home. I was only there for a short time, but it struck me as sad that so many people are so untrustworthy as to necessitate that kind of policy. However, we only gave each other a sideways glance because we trusted each other. It was only a formality. If one person had really been stealing, it would have gotten by unnoticed.

cheyanne4

Yes it is their policy,however there are designated people that have that job.

ladypetite

Employee theft! UGH!! When I had my restaurant in Las Vegas, I would have an employee meeting once a month to address issues, announce upcoming events and answer questions. The 3rd month after my restaurant opened, during the questions and answer portion, one of the waitresses asked when we were going to get more serveware, silverware and glasses. (This was a sore spot with me since I had originally furnished the restaurant with 3 times the items in question....our seating capacity was 170...and now we could just barely cover one seating.)

Sooooo....I answered her question with one of my own "Does everyone now have enough dishes, silverware and glassware to complete their sets at home?......because I am not purchasing more until you do." (I know....sounds harsh, but I was fed up with the employee theft at this point. Cash register shortages, bar shortages, missing liquor, cases of lobster, full prime ribs, etc., etc.)

I do not think searching employees in view of customers is appropriate.....but the few rotten apples have spoiled the perception of the whole bunch.

I apologize for my rant, but many do not realize how bad this problem can be.

CircleSquare

Speaking of clear plastic purses, I remember when, after the Columbine shooting incident in Colorado, kids all over the country had to have clear plastic or mesh backpacks for several years.

Crafty Chick

As a former employee of JoAnn's-it is store policy. Even if you are the ones staying until closure, the manager looks in everyone's purse, lunch bag, etc. and then opens his or her bag's for one of the employees to check.

Honeynga

I worked for Joanns for a few weeks until I realized that it was just too hard on my old body; but I never had to show my purse when we left....probably depends on the mgr and what issues have been in the past.

NOW, years ago while in college, I worked for a large automative manufacturing company and the "hourly" employees had to show their lunch boxes as they were leaving each day.....come to find out some employees were throwing stuff over a fence in the back of the property and retrieving later, i.e., tires, etc.

wvdek

The majority of the good folks are 'paying' for the habits of others.

My DH's mom was a cleptomaniac and a price changer. She also tried to teach her children this same thing. She did steal but not nearly as much as she would go along the aisles and change prices. She would find a price that suited her best, take off the price she did not like, replace it with the price she did like, and think nothing of it. Needless to say, I learned quickly she was not all there.

irma tapia

I have seen the same thing and not only that......I was checking out with a stack of fabric and this clerk started looking through it and said to me "I need to make sure you're not stealing anything" That really made me made so the next couple of days I went back because I couldn't get this off my mind and I asked for the store manager, he came over to me and I told him what had happened and he looked surprised and wanted to know who the clerk was and I told him. I told him this had happened before but with that clerk she was nicer about it, she just said "I need to make sure you got everything".

That store is really begining to bug me.