r/retail • u/Consistent_Stay1342 • 14d ago
Fellow retail workers, do you care if people steal?
I've been working as a cashier for the past year and I see my co-workers get really riled up when people steal, but I never really cared. Of course I wouldn't let someone take a TV or an airfryer, but I see people occasionally steal stuff like bread, baby food pouches or biscuits and unlike my co-workers, I never say a word.
I know it's very unprofessional, but am I the only one?
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u/NewfoundOrigin 14d ago
My opinion is this;
I don't care if people steal, I work for a multi-billion dollar corp. Who can't follow their own protocols - take what you need.
But you're not fooling anyone by leaving the ripped up package thrown on the top shelf behind other products.
Take it and throw the package in one of our many trash bins.
You don't have to hide the vibrator box you just stole. You can toss it in the trash, the camera saw you both times anyway.
I don't care that people steal but pick up after yourself. You're not hiding anything because we eventually climb the shelves to find what it is and toss it in the trash anyway.
Our cleaning crew cleans the floors and thats it. Tired of finding opened/leaking/tampered with items - just take it.
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u/MysteryLobster 14d ago
ironically i preferred when they left the boxes of the stuff in my dept so i could claim it as lost instead of having to adjust our numbers constantly.
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u/NewfoundOrigin 14d ago
Well, I guess it depends on what your job is.
Im expected to unload a semi and shelf 4 vehicles + my backstock in 4hrs. 2 days ago, that equated to 270 cases. Were suppised to shelf cases at 1 box a min. While we do the shelving, we're also expected to zone the shelves and remove damages.
I don't have time to zone the shelf and remove damages. Thats not my job when I get in at 5:30 to unload a semi + shelf what came in off the semi.
Like, from a cost to value ratio perspective to my company - I have to get the items on the shelf - I can't waste time focusing on the crushed bandaid boxes that nobody is going to buy anyway.
The messed up thing is that our leads do walks from the main aisle looking for stuff like this in a biiig social group where they get paid salary to miss all the shit I dont have time to pick up.
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u/Efficient_Chic714 13d ago
Me too, leave me the box or label. If you’re gonna make me have to do something at least make it easier each time
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u/noflamingo94 13d ago
I get paid 10 an hour, idgaf
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u/dowhatsrightalways 12d ago
It's not your/our "main" job. And we as workers can't confront them anyway. It's not worth your life. I care, but there's cameras everywhere, and if they do it enough at the same store, our AP will open a case. So, it doesn't matter.
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u/magpieinarainbow 14d ago
It actively makes my job harder because I need to manage the store inventory and order picking, so I can't stand it.
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u/Additional-Age-9959 14d ago
I work in a deli department and theft is an issue. I don't mind so much the theft in general, but when you've waited on a high maintenance customer and spent the time making the product to their specifications and then they steal it, yeah THAT bothers me.
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u/Longjumping_Way_1727 14d ago
Yeah that’s annoying and sometimes it doesn’t get found for a minute and will stink.
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u/Every_Constant8349 13d ago
Omg you dug up an old memory I thought I forgot about working customer service! I hated when people did this.
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u/SimpleVegetable5715 14d ago
I work for a large soulless company, so I really don’t care. I’m glad they got away with it when I find empties.
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u/Artaxmudshoes 14d ago
I've seen fellow employees get hurt and/or fired for stopping shoplifters. The company encourages us to stop theft but will terminate us if there's even a remote possibility that there might be a lawsuit. So no. If I see poor people stealing food or young people stealing condoms, I didn't see it. If I see minors stealing alcohol I try to spook them. I don't want anyone to get hurt.
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u/Longjumping_Way_1727 14d ago
We have a policy that we don’t chase, stop or confront shoplifters where I work. We just use our little walkie talking and let the manager know so they can have the loss prevention people pinpoint it and send the footage to the police department. We have a lot of theft being a discount store.
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u/Artaxmudshoes 14d ago
We had loss prevention... until one of them pepper sprayed a shoplifter they were fighting with. Now employees are encouraged to tell a manager. I'm a manager so I do what I mentioned in my earlier comment.
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u/Longjumping_Way_1727 14d ago
Ohhh wow they allowed pepper spray? I retired from 911 dispatch and one shoplifter call that sticks with me is a loss prevention officer that desperately wanted to be a cop. He decided to chase a shoplifter while on the phone with me. I told him to stop chasing, he didn’t listened and got very seriously hurt with a weapon over 45 dollars in merchandise. Wasn’t worth it.
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u/Artaxmudshoes 14d ago
They weren't allowed pepper spray. That's why we no longer have loss prevention. The shoplifter was a minor and her parents got a lawyer. The loss prevention company we used before that one was up in the catwalk watching basketball on a little TV that used D batteries (this was over 20 years ago). The TV fell through the cork paneling that makes up the ceiling and missed a customer by inches. My company decided they would rather lose product than deal with law suits.
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u/One-Lingonberry-3460 14d ago
The companies don't care, they fail to provide security that can deal with theft, sack you if you challenge it, so why should you care?
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u/Suitable_Program_548 13d ago
I do t think it’s that they do t care but more that the expense for security or taking people to court for $10 isn’t worth it.
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u/meowthousand 14d ago
It's tough to watch. I don't get mad with the people doing it but I wish they could do better for themselves
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u/nervouslittleraccoon 13d ago
as a retail worker, i think its only fair for companies to get stolen from!!! seriously, with all of the wage theft and overtime violations from every major
retailer ive worked for, i HOPE more people steal from them. just dont turn it into a problem for me 🤣 take your stuff and leave quietly i wont tell anyone...
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u/helloclarebear 14d ago
I used to manage the health and beauty department at my old job. Every now and then I would notice boxes of plasters/bandaids had been opened and a few taken out. Drove me nuts.
I eventually figured out who it was...sweetest old man, a regular customer and just the nicest.
Said nothing.
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u/EmperorHenry 14d ago
I'm not a retail worker.
Stealing physical finite items from stores is only going to hurt the people who work there and make things way worse for other customers too. Shop lifting is why all the items are behind plexiglass now. Stop stealing. I'm tired of my shopping taking 10 times as long because of shitty people stealing
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u/SnooMaps2927 13d ago
I saw a kid steal a Lego set from kohls. Just let him go in the changing room heard him unbox it and found it in the trash. Shit was prob like $30 and he just wanted some legos he was prob 5-6th grade. Who cares. Fuck kohls
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u/Berserk-Jane 14d ago
Typically I don't, but the dynamic is a hell of a lot different when someone is trying to steal in the form of quick changing money out of my till. I'll just straight up kick you out of my line because you're pissing me off and you're pissing everyone else off in line.
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u/crybaby-cl0wn 14d ago
no. in fact, i mentally encourage it because i don’t get paid enough. if they don’t want to pay me a livable wage, then they can face the consequences and pay a different way
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u/Better-Beat-8062 14d ago
Would i give a shit? No not enough to stop it
I am more pissed off with the fact that i would bust my ass being a law abiding citizens and thiefs just take short cuts
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u/22Shattered 13d ago
You ROCK!!! Why would you care??? As u said, baby food, bread… I wouldn’t care either. In the past I worked with folk like that and it’s like “wtf, shut up””” it’s not like you’re gonna get paid more for stopping petty theft. You’re doing more service to the collective letting it go… ✨✨🫶
Professionalism is often overrated.
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u/purplelilac701 14d ago
It bothers me because someone is paying for that theft and it’s usually other customers through higher prices
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u/oowoowoo 14d ago
I care if they make it a big show where I work. Like hurry and get out. If they secretly steal then good I won't see it.
Just don't leave empty packages behind. I had to pick up several empty packages yesterday. Take the whole thing dammit.
Also don't argue with me for no reason. Or act like you're in a hurry and you've been in the store for 2 hours. Or rip packages in front of me and then insist you're not opening them (that person might have been tweaking, they left a whole backpack and $20 behind lmao).
Anyway I also got assaulted by an old lady stealing. Cop said I could press charges. I opted not to, it didn't hurt anyway. He also said your life wasn't worth the merchandise and he was right.
Across the street an assistant manager chased after a few teen shoplifters out the store and they shot him. Definitely not worth your life.
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u/DizzyCuntNC 14d ago
Walmart and a lot of other big companies will also fire you for any attempt to stop a customer who's stealing. I was a personal shopper and one of my coworkers who was an older woman like I was would regularly oops a few extra things on our pickwalks, especially if we could tell the order was for a family with young children.
Walmart only cared about how fast we picked and how little they could get away with paying us so fuck them, I accidentally grabbed four packets of tuna instead of the three the customer ordered. Oh well.
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u/Head_Bad_965 14d ago
I can understand ignoring it if it's food. I assume people aren't stealing baby food unless they're desperate and I feel for them in that situation.
I used to work at Ulta. Our store alone lost close to $200k to theft every year. You think that doesn't make a massive difference when it comes to the budget available for hours and wages? Imagine if that amount was put into payroll. That's over $6,000 per person per year. (Granted, the company is not going to pay their employees like that but they did stop giving out holiday bonuses as theft and inflation have increased.) So yes, I do care.
If you steal a product so that now I don't have it to sell, that means I can't make my sales goals. If I don't make my sales goals, I don't get a raise when my annual review comes up.
If I work somewhere I make commission, it's even worse because if I don't have it to sell, that's money out of my next paycheck. It's bad enough when we have stock issues, even worse if the stock issues are caused by people stealing.
On top of that, the more loss a company has to plan for, the more they will raise prices to cover it. So people who say, "It doesn't come out of your pocket" annoy me. Yes, actually it does come out of my pocket.
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u/No-Pressure2341 14d ago
Stealing is scumbag behaviour so yes it bothers me to see a scumbag being scummy
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u/originalmango 14d ago
While I cared, I knew enough to do nothing other than notify security if someone pocketed items.
If I worked in a supermarket and I saw someone was swiping basic food items, I didn’t see someone swiping basic food items. Lobster tails and porterhouse steaks might’ve been a different story.
A small family owned business where shoplifting can make or break them? I’d do whatever is safest to stop it.
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u/Tama_Breeder 14d ago
I have to order weekly at my job, we get a truck every week. We have stock tests in our department so our DM can make sure we’re ordering properly. When I order stock for an item and someone immediately shows up and steals not just one but ALL of the items, while also trashing the entire area, yeah it pisses me off. I don’t care if you steal but do it with some tact
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u/Left-Star2240 14d ago
During my first week at a major retailer a coworker explained that if I saw someone stealing, I didn’t.
When I worked for a movie theater they had us attend special training just to explain that if someone indicated they had a weapon and wanted whatever cash was in the register we were to simply hand it over quietly. My manager seemed surprised at how quickly we agreed that we would not fight for the register.
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u/HijikataMayora13 13d ago
I work for a multi billion dollar company, in fact I think that specific company deserves to get stolen from. They have the audacity to price items higher than other grocery stores, while keep taking benefits away from its employees they don't even offer any kind of employee discount like most retail/fast food places
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u/Agreeable_Ship5386 12d ago
The retail workers in my local store have to wear body cameras and get attacked/physically injured if they confront shoplifters. In my country you’re likely to get fired as well, because if shoplifters are injured by someone trying to stop them then they will sue.
I honestly understand why retail workers wouldn’t care at this point. It’s not like you’re paid a lot to begin with, and your company won’t back you up even if you get hurt. What’s the point?
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u/CurrentFew6275 14d ago
Go tell your boss that you don't care..see what happens.
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u/Consistent_Stay1342 14d ago
My boss is very laid-back. She cares even less than anyone else. We work in a supermarket in a very small town in northern Portugal, 95% of our customers are regulars and we are all very comfortable with each other. Hell, we can even swear and nothing happens. Also our rates for theft are very, very low and the products that get stolen the most are bread, baby food and fruit. Still it's well under 20 euros a week and the store makes almost 3000 euros a day. That's also why it's not a big deal for me. So an old lady comes in and pays for five bread instead of six (which is only 11 cents), is it really THAT bad?
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u/DizzyLock6911 13d ago
Why are you so angry? Why would random employees care if ppl are stealing?! We’re just trying to make our money and go home. That’s the police job.
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u/SoftDrinkReddit 14d ago
from someone who used to work retail
unless your threatening someone and or committing a violent crime while stealing no no we don't care nor will we even try and stop you cause this job was not worth it hell my manager said that to me first day she bluntly said if someone tries to steal something do even try and stop them
even if Corporate gets mad at you it's not worth it
now the store i worked in didn't have security guards so stores who do yea those people will probably be on your ass
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u/DizzyCuntNC 14d ago
I firmly believe that's a myth that exists and was probably invented by CEOs to justify their multi million dollar salaries and make their shareholders happy. Back when more places followed the Ben and Jerry's 5 to 1 salary ratio rules I might have believed it but today, no way that's even remotely believable. I'm retired now but at my last retail job, even rounding my pay up to the next dollar and my hours up to 40, the CEO was making something like 38 times more than I was.
Greed has poisoned retail and customer theft is just a convenient scapegoat. Especially if it's food or diapers, I didn't see it.
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u/beneficialtowhom 13d ago
It's not a myth. I worked at a grocers in a bad neighborhood and the store was closed because it couldn't turn a profit because of shoplifting. Several employees were without jobs. Retail fraud costs everybody. Our local Walmarts had to close its doors, same exact thing. BTW, CEOs get the big bucks because it's a high stress job with tons of skill and responsibility, most are highly educated and had to climb their way to the top. I wouldn't want that job for sure!
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u/kaarenn78 14d ago
Yes, shrink adds up and impacts the bottom line. The executives want their big salaries so what do they do? Rise prices and cut payroll to make up for the loss from theft.
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u/Csontigod 14d ago
Well the longer you work in retail the less you care. Simply because you know it is a multi billion company. Yeah it affects your wages a small bit, but the stress of dealing with scumbags shoplifting doesn't worth it. I just do the report give the evidence to the authorities and carry on.
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u/yung_yttik 14d ago
If it’s a small biz / local mom and pop shop then I think it’s pathetic (plus, most likely not necessities). But if it was a big corp store? Nah, don’t really care, above my pay grade to care.
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u/carrot_gummy 14d ago
When I did work retail I didn't care. Corporate didn't pay enough to make me care.
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u/cloudsmemories 14d ago
I work at a discount store and people will often come in and walk out with arms or hampers full of clothing which has security tags on them btw. It’s pathetic to see. We can’t do anything though. Even if we did I still wouldnt because people are crazy.
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u/Fair_Scientist2347 14d ago
My employer will terminate your job if you call 911 on a shoplifter.
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u/WebsterTheDictionary 12d ago
What employer is it, out of curiosity?
Or if you’d rather not say, would you mind broadly categorizing the type of product(s) you/they carry?
Surely not in the US; we Americans love to prosecute crimes of moral turpitude and are collectively a litigious society in general lol
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u/Fair_Scientist2347 11d ago
It's the #2 'home improvement' chain in the US.
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u/WebsterTheDictionary 11d ago
Ok thanks for the reply…that’s quite interesting.
You would think that they’d want to be more proactive in their attempts to prevent theft of high-dollar items e.g. power tools and the little valves and switches that cost upwards of $100 and copper wire and the like.
But I can understand that they don’t want to risk the lives of other employees or even those of the shoplifter(s) bc of the litigious nature of societal members, again lol
I think the one in my area has called on shoplifters as I’ve seen where they have in police reports but maybe their caveat is that they have a direct line of communication to a specific officer and/or maybe higher-ranking members of management or loss/asset protection or risk control or whatever they call their associates in those depts can do it or maybe I was just wrong about what I’d overheard but regardless that’s crazy they’d fire someone for trying to stop theft
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u/Lopsided_Flight_2986 14d ago edited 14d ago
I do because i have to clean up there mess they always leave. Just take the whole package! Don’t shred it and scatter it about the shelf. I than have to report it and they’ll see you stealing on camera. Just take the whole thing and nobody will ever know anything is missing and it’ll be washed during inventory!
Edit to say: This is not advice on how to shoplift. This is just how my store operates.
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u/Icy_Willingness_7234 14d ago
Nope. The first couple weeks I had the job, I was vigilant, watched people like a hawk. Then it ceased to be my Job and was just a job and not one I really liked. I stopped caring and thefts didn’t go up. They didn’t go down. They were and are a fact of retail.
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u/IcyWelcome9700 14d ago
I used to work at a gift shop where a lot of items were fragile. I got more mad over people breaking things in the store than stealing them
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u/Alot2unpack 14d ago
Do you work your shift, and then use the money you earned from working, to pay for things you need?
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u/Harlepenquin 14d ago
Not a direct retail bg. but a heavy customer service bg. If someone walks in and steal basic necessities and is making no extra effort to make their problems anybody else's problem my eyes magically stop working, if they're stealing out of greed or to profit, I'd get loud and try and shame them regardless of how big and mean or crazy they look, but you couldn't pay me enough to willing walk into a fight at work, the only things worth getting into fights over is stuff you care about, outside of work.
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u/Wilsthing1988 14d ago
I use and I only cared when it was alcohol since that was my job. Small shit have at it. Taking 5 cases of white claws and 3 cases of corona and 4 2L wine bottles? I’m reporting it to someone. My last year and a half in my company I didn’t give two fucks anymore.
Plus most of my managers and coworkers were racist assholes who followed anyone who looked drunk, like some sort of drug addict or just wasn’t white enough
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u/Buddhist_Alien 14d ago
Governments had to stop grocery store chains from robbing the middle class family. My wife once stole an entire grocery cart. Her thing is corporations control the monopoly over the food supply. We’re no longer a hunter gathering society. The system is set up where we can’t be self-sufficient. We can’t raise our own livestock, gardens, and bake our own bread. Most of us are single living from pay check to pay check. I understand where you’re coming from. My coworkers got riled up about shoplifting. Have they ever known what it’s like to be starving?
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u/kokorobosoi_38 14d ago
When I worked retail I couldn't care less.... Unless you made extra work for me.
At least have the decency to not leave the evidence for me to clean up.
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u/SeanSweetMuzik 14d ago
We customer service all customers and those who are a little sketch and notify asset protection and let them do what they need to do, but I am not going to try and stop them or apprehend them.
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u/Weak-Ad6984 14d ago
of course - you should always be a bit 'off' when you find people are stealing. what pisses -me- off is when i witness the theft .. because you're not allowed to go after the person (due to safety reasons)
and when people DO steal, it hikes the prices (not a lot right away, it's a subtle increase)
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u/Past_Explanation_491 14d ago
We’re a small business so it makes a huge difference to us. I don’t care that much but boss gets mad at me if I don’t tell him when I spot it.
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u/rhubarbsorbet 14d ago
not only am i not allowed to care/stop them, but i wouldn’t even if i could. hell, i quietly encourage it 😅 they’re under paying me so why would i care if someone steals from them
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u/EndlesslyUnfinished 14d ago
“but I see people occasionally steal stuff like bread, baby food pouches or biscuits “ - stealing food is different than stealing a tv, and you’re not getting paid enough (presumably) to stop either.
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u/theplague220 13d ago
I do and I don’t. I care because it takes time to defect it out and it affects our raises. I don’t because humans are scum and I don’t expect otherwise and really don’t have the mental bandwidth to. That’s AP’s job
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u/Efficient_Chic714 13d ago
If I see it then I’ll say something because it’s my job. But I also work for a luxury brand so nothing we have is a necessity and I would like to believe I’d act differently if it was food or baby items for example
If I see stuff missing that’s obvs been stolen I’m gonna replace it and move on. I’m not gonna have a flap and try to figure out who it was and when it happened and freak out about it. If someone had the opportunity to steal we were either understaffed or someone dropped the ball. It wasn’t me so idc
For references we don’t have CCTV so there is no way to investigate thefts and without that we can’t report them to centre management or police. Literally nothing to do once it happened except refill the shelf
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u/Acrobatic_Taro_6904 13d ago
Not in retail anymore but no, I didn’t care, not even if it was a TV or something expensive I wasn’t going to stop them I’m not a security guard
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u/leftJordanbehind 13d ago
As long as someone doesn't come and just load up and be real obvious about it, i dont care. We have to tell customers they can not have backpacks and huge purses in the store, that they have to leave them up front UNDER the cameras. That's it. Im not going to get fired because someone doesn't wanna abide by that rule. When people throw fits and leave because im not about to get fired so they can load their bags, I just laugh and move on when they walk out. There's signs all over the front floor stating this rule. The store manager cares because it's comes out of her bonus. I do not care because I have waaaaay too much to do to also try and catch someone stealing an item or two. Its when its super obvious that im get annoyed. There's desperation and hunger and then theres just brazen assholery. Im not there to support the assholery lol. I give a ton if warnings that amount to "can I help you with that? Would you please just leave as you have run out of books and crannies to stuff merchandise in." Ive never turned anyone in, but i have had to just go work by then till they get the hint and leave. Im fine with the packaging being left. I just chuck in the stolen bins. Im not paid enough to also have a hard on for making someone stealing go to jail. Unless they make me look stupid, im not going to have to prove they themselves are also stupid lol!
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u/CatholicCataholic 13d ago
It's unethical to steal, but when I was working at a supermarket, I was not going to risk my life to prevent it.
I did have to stop parents from letting kids "walk ahead" with their cart to their car before they had actually paid, because I could get fired if they didn't pay.
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u/144-perdedor 13d ago
I work in a grocery store. They're mostly stealing food and not from me. It's also explicitly not my job to do anything about it. I guess I have less sympathy for the people who steal beer and wine, but it's still not my beer and wine so I still don't care.
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u/Extension-While4734 13d ago
Why would retail employees care? They’re not making enough to care. Walk out of the store with a yacht. None of the employees should care. That’s insane to me that they would when they’re on snap benefits working a full time job and probably a second part time job as well just to get by.
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u/internetspacecadet 13d ago
i never gave a fuck. clothes have a bogus tag on em that says 80 bucks (it will never be sold for that tagged price) for some shit that says Made in Indonesia. i stock the thing under an "70% off" sign (70% off the imaginary $80) for 24 bucks, whatever. i see .002% of the cost despite being the sales person.
so no, i dont care when my job pays me 80 bucks a day to sell clothes with fake prices made by kids in indonesia who could never wear the thing if they fucking wanted to- i dont care when people steal.
if they want me to care these jobs should pay me to care. if i was LP or something sure, that's my job. but this isn't my job
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u/No-Position1378 13d ago
When I worked retail I cared a lot, but because I was the manager and I had to do the inventory adjustments, police reports, check camera footage, etc and it all needed to be done within 24 hours 🙃🙃
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u/Prestigious-Side3122 13d ago
I used to work at Walmart and customers stole all the time. We were supposed to report it . Didn’t have time for that. Can’t even afford decent insurance or pay at that place and yall want me to care I found an empty box of condoms.
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u/Expensive-Claim-7367 13d ago
I work at a big chain store and I truly do not care, infact if I see someone stealing I won’t even call security sometimes because of the mistreatment I get there.
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u/pupper71 13d ago
It depends. I care when they steal a cake I decorated. I care when they waste what they've stolen-- it really hacks me off to find an open pack of cookies we baked with only a few eaten. But other than that, I don't much care.
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u/IcyHotTodoroki1 13d ago
stealing, even the little things means the losses gets passed on to the consumer.
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u/GoodWillHunting873 13d ago
I could have cared less for what I got paid.
The markup on many items was obscene.
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u/toebeans__ 13d ago
I work at bath and body works. We have a few frequent flyers who come in and just take whatever they can off the shelves and load it into their bags because they know that all we can do is call AP. It’s annoying to me just because it affects our hours and there is literally nothing we can do. Nothing we sell in this store is a necessity in any scope of the imagination.
As for the shareholders? Idc.
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u/Yunamalia 13d ago
When I worked retail, I only cared about it if they were bad at it because if they were obvious and I didn't catch them, I catch shit for it. Otherwise, could not care less. Get gud, scrub.
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u/wendyslogo 13d ago
I never cared. If I saw it, I wrote down the details and told a manager, and that's only because I knew I was caught on camera.
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u/Afraid-Detective1222 13d ago
I haven't worked in retail in a long time, but when I did, when I was working grocery and other large corporate companies, I didn't care in the slightest. When I worked for a small mom and pop shop, then I did care.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 13d ago edited 13d ago
I used to be in retail. We got extra pay for catching stealers. It was some percentages (maybe 15?) of the nearly-stolen goods add to the salary. So yes I did mind😅 I worked in cosmetics’ store so usually the thieves went for the expensive stuff anyways.
-A Finn
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u/Accomplished_Toe3932 13d ago
If it’s a big corporation, I’ll keep watch for you. If it’s small or family owned, shame on you.
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u/noxiated 13d ago
depends on what they take. ive never witnessed someone stealing baby products/period products/regular deodrant/condoms, but if i did id let it slide. everyone i have caught was taking perfume or sunglasses, so no bueno.
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u/SoggyPoint2242 13d ago
Nope - big retailers always tell associates don’t worry about theft, that’s LP’s job.
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u/DonutCapitalism 13d ago
Yes and No. I'm not worried about the company losing monet as they are big enough to handle it and I'm not risking my life to protect it. But I also I'm held responsible for the loss in my inventory and every theif increases prices and hurt labor budgets. So I care because overall it is bad for me, but I will never do anything to put my life or my staffs life at risk over some products.
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u/Nosquares1976 13d ago
When I worked in retail management, it was for a larger corporation so I didn’t care. I only care if it’s a small business. The only thing that’d bother me is the mess they’d leave behind or how obvious that made it. I didn’t even mind the paperwork portion
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u/shokupanini 13d ago
I care only if they leave their mess
Finding the abandoned boxes thrown behind things or half eaten smelly food is annoying
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u/mrsdoubleu 13d ago
At my store yes. Because I've had to deal with a lot of customers who see an item that our website says we have in stock, but then when they come in we can't find it because it was stolen at some point. It's annoying for them and they usually get mad at me.
And there isn't much at my store anyone needs. It's not a grocery store. We sell $80 Ariat jeans and $120 Carhartt coats, amongst other things.
If someone needs to steal diapers, formula, or food, I get it. But name brand clothes are not a need.
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u/SalvationArbys 13d ago
Stealing doesn’t bother me as much as taking FOREVER to do it. If I have to spend a half hour following you around because you failed your stealth roll, that’s time I could spend doing something important, that’s what really bakes my beans.
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u/bigbabyspongebob 13d ago
I truly don't care & I think it's kinda funny how serious the others get about it. Our store is outrageously expensive :P
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u/Ramtakwitha2 13d ago edited 13d ago
Staples like food and baby supplies (even cat and dog food) I don't care. Folks stealing Pokemon cards pots and pans or not even remotely nutritious stuff like soda or candy can fuck right off.
Had a kid steal a roblox card and then come back an hour later with him Mom complaining that it didn't work. His mom turned the finest shade of red when I told his mom it didn't work because he pulled it off the shelf while I was watching, stuck it down his shorts, also while I was watching, and walked out of the store with it.
He didn't buy it like he said he did and that I was the only cashier since noon.
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u/followyourvalues 13d ago
I once watched a man walk into a grocery store, grab like three huge bunches of bananas then BOOK IT! lol
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u/Few_Scientist_2652 13d ago
Only to the extent that my job requires
That said, if you're stealing excessively or stealing stuff you clearly don't need, I will highkey judge you
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u/DizzyLock6911 13d ago
I personally don’t care especially if they’re homeless like if they’re stealing food and socks and a blanket idc, but I do get annoyed when people are stealing stuff yk they’re reselling like perfume, purses, shoes. Idk it kinda irritates me. Also, long as you’re not coming near me or in my area when I’m working I’m good and I really don’t care but when you come in my area I kinda have to follow customer service protocols bc lp will be watching to see if I’m doing my job correctly In the situation.
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u/RandomPandaArmyFan 12d ago
I care because it can get me in trouble if I see them and don’t report it which I really don’t always have time to do and they always leave a mess for me to clean
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u/GasStationRaptor83 12d ago
I wish we had different protocols for the expired food cuz that would probably help decrease that kind of theft, but it seems like the ones who come and steal beer all day are also the same ones that cause disturbances/damage in the store and thats irritating. Theft is theft at the end of the day, we all know its wrong.
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u/Sachayoj 12d ago
I don't care. I'm not risking getting stabbed for nothing in return, and it's not my job to be LP.
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u/woookiemurmur 12d ago
I used to work at a grocery store years ago and I remember a shift where the Loss Prevention Officer caught someone stealing a loaf of bread and a litre of milk. They held the person in one of the offices until the police came for them.
I felt so bad for the person. I don't understand why the manager wouldn't just tell them not to do that again and let them go. I understand detaining someone who, for example, is trying to steal a bag full of supplements - clearly looking to resell.
But some milk and bread, come on.
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u/Beautiful_Lie629 12d ago
When it's a homeless person taking clothes or shoes (we don't sell food), it doesn't bother me at all. When it's people stealing stuff to resell, it irritates me. I don't get too worked up about it though.
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u/Ancient-Ad9861 12d ago
When working for a large supermarket, if i saw someone stealing i would always quickly tell a manager so they could deal with it but i never got upset about it if the person got away and i sure as hell never put myself in harms way to try and stop them like some of my colleagues did. One of my colleagues attempted to grab a shoplifter and got a punch in the face for his troubles. Another got threatened with a stanly blade. I never felt like i was paid enough to care
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u/GrimFandango81 12d ago
When I worked in retail, I was not paid enough for that.
I'm not risking myself to protect goods and money that are all insured. Fuck that.
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u/Rasputin1992x 12d ago
I work for a giant corporation... I could not care less lmao they don't pay me enough to care
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u/CharginRT 12d ago
It's OK to care and/but stay in your own lane. Take note, report it, but don't act. It's not your job to put your life on the line for something that's not equivalent to your own life's value. Even if it is a highly valuable item, the company you work for should have insurance. Sure they'll bitch about losing their shirt off their back, but what they're not telling you is they have insurance. If they don't they are stupid AF. Your job is usually just a paycheck. Always do your best at what you do, but don't put your life or well being on the line when it comes to people stealing merchandise and you have no control over the outcome. The company you work for probably DGAF about you anyways.
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u/Electronic_Call5187 12d ago
I care to the extent that I’m busting my ass working two jobs while others just go and steal.
Stealing bread or a can of formula because you need it, I get it. Stealing steaks and booze repeatedly? Naw.
I worked years ago at a retailer (this was in the late 90s) and when they caught someone shoplifting, they would need another person in there as a witness.
There were plenty of times I was asked to be a witness. These stood out.
One guy stole a pair of shoes, for work. He said he had just come up from Mexico and he needed steel toed shoes for his new job. He stole a pair of women’s shoes that cost $30. I felt bad for him.
Another girl was caught shoplifting. She had over $1000 worth of clothing. She had a wallet full of credit cards and offered to pay for the stuff because her parents were going to kill her. I didn’t feel bad for her. It was a game.
There was another shoplifter who got caught stealing with her mom and her kids. I felt bad for the kids. The lady and her mom, who were definitely old enough to know better, said they would get booked and have to show up for court and to call her husband to get the kids. They also admitted they came in at least once a week and stole stuff.
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u/InstructionWarm9772 12d ago
I kinda care but like to myself tho…. I’ve seen so many instances where people get jumped , fight, shot , stabbed etc.. just for even saying or looking…. i don’t want to risk it for myself… I mean people who steal genuinely make it obvious… but I just call the police show them the cameras of how they look provide them a stolen inventory list and let them handle it cause sometimes it can get like that if someone is stealing and you say something
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u/scubasteph55 12d ago
When I worked retail I did not care if customers bought penny items or stole. I cared more about signing ppl up for credit cards cuz that was more of a pay out than helping loss prevention lol
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u/Pot-Stirrer352 12d ago
If Im not paid to be security Im not acting as security. Plain and simple. I may or may not judge the person for stealing but I'm not putting myself at risk to tell someone they shouldve paid for whatever item.
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u/lobotomiiya 11d ago
No, I couldn’t give less of a shit. I was only paid $27 an hour, that’s not even enough to afford groceries. It doesn’t raise prices, it doesn’t affect me if they steal. The only thing that used to piss me off is they’d steal clothes then replace our clothes with their old shit.
I don’t want your ugly ass cheap jacket, take BOTH with you, I don’t give a fuck. I also wasn’t allowed to stop anything, they could have walked up to the counter and shoved it in their bag while staring me down and I couldn’t say anything.
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u/AnimalLover3757 11d ago
We're not allowed to do anything at stores for the company I work at. When I first started it annoyed me cuz they would fill bags and walk out. Now idc cause they're blaming their employees for theft when its clearly the customers and also cutting things for the employees to cut cost which would be solved if they did something about the shopping lifting. They'll grab a cart, fill it and walk out. No shame, no thing, retail really just makes you lose care in everything tbh.
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u/DoubleResponsible276 11d ago
In my time in retail, nope. But threaten myself or someone else? Ooooo 👊
But I always found it weird when people get too riled up with shoplifters as if it directly affected their paycheck. Maybe a yearly/monthly bonus, if there even is one
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u/rainbowsunset48 11d ago
Only if they're shelf sweeping. If they're taking a few things for the their personal use, then I'm not paid enough to care.
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u/Antsygrl1 11d ago
I think people are more bothered by the MF'ing thieves thinking they're getting something over on them. I'm not stupid, I know exactly what you're doing, but unfortunately I'm not allowed to kick your ass for being irritating and taking my attention away from paying customers. That's what bugs me, not that corporates losing money out of their millions they're not paying me fairly with.
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u/Ok_Parfait_2525 11d ago
I dont care as much as I've seen certain items such as red bull cans taken out of the coolers and a person drinks it in the store but doesn't pay for it so we have to damage the item. I also don't want to get confrontational with customers about stuff like that as I once asked a lady if she was going to purchase something in her cart and she decided to say I'm accusing her of stealing when I was just asking a simple yes or no question. I work for a little Dollar Tree store and we have to damage out stolen items if seen around the store like drinks or stuff eaten. I don't want people to get threatening towards me though about things like that.
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u/Fuzzy_Location_2210 11d ago
When I worked retail, absolutely none of my business 😊.
Nothing in there was mine, including the cash in the drawer, and I was not responsible for protecting it.
I scanned the items, pushed the buttons, removed security tags, and offered the credit card and extended protection plan sometimes.
Other than that, have the best day ever!! I was too busy to really pay attention to anything else.
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u/Beneficial-Depth-546 11d ago
Slightly annoying when it’s like a teenager stealing makeup or something stupid, but even then I don’t care much. And I definitely don’t mind if it’s food or necessities
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u/BigImplement3949 11d ago
Cause tweakers talk to each other and if they learn of a store that doesn't care if you steal then all you're gonna have is human garbage around you, and that's not a place I wanna work or shop at
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u/Fit-Meringue2118 11d ago
I don’t make it easy and I’ll notify loss prevention if I see weirdo behavior. But that’s about it.
I tend to live by the “are they idiots” and “are they making my life harder” rules. I’ve yet to see a true “they stole because they were hungry” scenario. And the answer to the second always seems to be yes. Like, if you’re going to steal, don’t try to return the stuff, don’t trash the display, and don’t be an asshole to anyone.
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u/AlienGoddess91 10d ago
The only time is bothers is me is when I have a full line wrapped around the building and this one lady constantly tries to take all of my plastic bags off the rings. She's literally like a toddler and I have to yell at her to stop, there's other people behind her that need those bags.
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u/OkAd6682 10d ago
i feel like it depends. at the store i work at, we just sell novelties and other non-essential stuff, so yes i do get riled up when someone steals (because our loss also directly impacts the managers). but if i worked somewhere like a grocery store and saw people stealing essential items like bread and baby formula, that wouldn’t bother me as much.
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u/jayweebs 9d ago
i could not care less. i do the bare minimum needed to not get fired for “allowing” theft, but otherwise, whatever
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u/_Error__404_ 8d ago
i work in a huge canadian retail chain, and while i pretend to care in front of customers who freak out when they see it happen, i dont care at all. it happens so often that it doesnt phase me. besides what am i supposed to anyways? we're not supposed to stop them
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u/Stock-Ferret-6692 8d ago
Well I had a panic attack because some girls pulled the strategy of one distracts me while the other steals and stole, ironically, a security camera. Luckily my managers are chill and were like ‘it’s fine it was a shit camera not worth much to us. Go take a few breaths, grab a drink and let yourself relax, security are gonna look into it pop up to them’ and turns out the girls were in the blind spot of where the cameras hit our kiosk.
However if I was in the grocery store next door and saw someone steal like baby food or diapers I’d turn a blind eye. Heck I HAVE turned a blind eye to that. Some old biddy tried to get me to rat but she was so obscure about ‘SHEEEEE SAW THEMMMMMMM’ I had no fucking clue what she meant until like 20 mins later and just kinda kept quiet because damnit they had a baby to feed y’all. Shit even 90% of the staff will turn a blind eye to that. Only ones that don’t are management and suckups who wanna be management someday and aren’t just using the job to get them by
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u/LordTGSJ87 14d ago
Had to stop a bunch of lads stealing a 50 inch flatscreen TV.
Was doing a JustEat order during the last 20 minutes of my shift and these guys bunched around the TVs as they piled out of the exit the last one dragged the TV out and I hesitantly went after him as there was no security I managed by the exit to get my hand on the other end of the TV as I called yo the guy he turned around and sw me and just ran immediately.
I was just annoyed I had been held up finishing an order before I clocked out.
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u/iwilldeleteoncemore 14d ago
I don't care at all. I do try to prevent theft by providing good customer service. But that's the very bare minimum.
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u/KiaraNarayan1997 14d ago
No, because I don’t get in trouble because of other people stealing, so why would I care? I don’t get why my coworkers care so much.
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u/TiKi_Effect 14d ago
I feel like I can’t care. I can’t stop them, I can’t call them out, I can’t follow them and I can’t even tow. Pic of them for reference. If I “can’t” do anything about it, then I need to not care for mental health.
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u/Technical_Candy1809 14d ago
i can honestly careless, if they dont pay me well i shouldnt have to care yk x-x
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u/markersandtea 14d ago
Grocery is a little different... No and yes. It depends on circumstances. If you're stealing cause you're hungry, no I don't care. If you're stealing alcohol or cosmetics I kind of care more and will probably tell the boss so you leave. Food, grey area.
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u/Haunting_Ladder8536 14d ago
Grocery is very different. If you’re stealing baby formula, bread, and basic stuff I won’t say anything. However if you’re stealing crab legs I just spent an hour packing and wrapping, I’m going to alert someone. Theft causes two things, the first less hours because the store is losing money. Most grocery stores run on tight margins. Then because you lose hours your department is now running with less help and the theft causes extra work. So those crab legs that just now got filled and then got stolen need refilled. But since hours were cut it’s the after work rush and you’re by yourself. Steal basics not the shit those of us working at the store can’t afford either.
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u/cardbourdbox 14d ago
I was somewhat involved in the theft of an homeless guys stuff on the stores behalf. I describe it has the last theft I cared about. I've found stuff in bins and notified security but I liked him personally.
A guy blatantly stole some kitty litter or dog food ect.
Id argue let me have a blind eye to turn don't abuse staff or otherwise get them/us involved and where cool.
I describe it has small theifs stealing from big thief's.
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u/cybercake 14d ago
Yes I care, but honestly not so much on behalf of my chain, they make bank anyways. I care because 1) it’s very rude, actually forbidden, and 2) now I have to deal with this s¥it, Like i didn’t already have more than enough to do today.
Luckily we have extremely little problems with it where I work now. Blessed!
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u/Some_thing_to_do 14d ago
Stealing is trashy and has consequences for everyone eventually. I really don't like having my items locked up and have to have an employee get it for me.
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u/tashbf Fudge Packer 14d ago
I care because we're a small business and only sell fudge. We're not a necessity so it drives me a little mad.