We are a nation of sticky-fingered workers. A new survey of 1,000 employees and managers shows that 68% of workers have stolen from work, and one-fifth of workers think it’s okay to steal for the following reasons:
- Company won’t notice anything missing (24%)
- Not paid enough (21%)
- Can’t afford to buy the item (17%)
- Boss is rude (13%)
Yes, workers are stealing because they feel underpaid and mistreated.
Employers should expect to stock employees’ homes with office supplies: 4 in 10 employees have stolen pens or pencils, and a quarter have taken paper clips and sticky notes. Office theft has been on the rise nationally, accounting for roughly 20% of supplies.
The most common items stolen from work are: pens, pencils, paper clips, sticky notes, paper, notepads, and highlighters, which are commonly taken from large companies. But 11-14% have stolen food, coffee, and soda, mostly from smaller companies. Only 5% have stolen more expensive items such as tech accessories.
Eighty percent of managers said that stealing is an automatic fireable offense at their company. The survey was commissioned by job-seeker resource TheInterviewGuys.com, who presumably don’t want you to get canned for pilfering.
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