[angela stone]

Hi guys,

I have a customer who has been with us for about 2 years.  She has had the current cleaners for about a year and a half.  They go in twice a week for a total of 6 hours.

A couple of months ago she had some jewellery go missing from her jewellery box.  She rang me to tell me but when didn't want me to do anything about it as she wasn't sure what had happened to it.  I offered to suspend the girls pending investigation, call the police, change the girls but she was adamant she wanted to keep the same girls and do nothing.

One of the two girls left on Friday and the customer called over the weekend to cancel her clean on Monday as another piece of jewellery had gone missing from her bottom draw.

When I mentioned it to the girls last time they already knew about the situation as her husband had been accused by her too, apparantly he has a drink problem and she thought he had sold it to pay for it! He had told the girls this.

She called the police yesterday so i'm waiting for a call from them. 

These girls have worked for me for a long time and no other customer has had any issue, in fact they have had quite a lot of recommendations.  I really don't think that they have taken it, especially after they knew that she had taken an itinery of every piece of jewellery in the house, if they are theives they aren't very clever ones!

I honestly don't know what to do!

Ange 

[The Great One]

Hi

Wait & see

Martin

[gordonswindows]

Hi Angela

Sorry to hear this but these things can and do happen

You are not qualified to deal with this and the right course of action at this stage is to allow the Police to do their job

If it comes out that there was a theft and one of your employees was to blame and I do say if, it will not reflect badly upon you nor your business.Everyone knows that unfortunately these things can and do happen by and to all different types of people and there but by the grace of god.

Any business is hard to judge when all goes well but it is what happens when a business has a difficulty to overcome that matters and that can define a persons/business reputation

This is not a good thing that is happening to you but it can become a good thing no matter the outcome of the enquiry as it is how you behave throughout that will build confidence credibility and reputation for your business.

Don't take it personally and don't let it get in the way when employing in the future this person  didn't steal from YOU (if she did in fact do it) and didn't steal from YOUR customer it was just an opportunity to them not an attack against you

Chin up, follow procedures and find ways to minimise anything similar from happening in the future

Cheers

Gordon

[BDCS]

It sounds to my that this cleaner is one of the best and you should do everything you can to stand by her. If she had been guilty the first time she would have run a mile at the earliest opportunity - she ingnored the poop thrown at her and got on with it and for her trouble get gets it again. The old man has swopped the gems for a bottle and has almost said as much. Keep the cleaner and dump the customer unless the police proove otherwise. What do you honestly think ?

[Rick Ward]

Whatever you do phone ACAS prior to saying anything or dealing with  your staff. Take their advice on everything as employment law is a minefield, dont forget the police aren't qualified in matters concerning employment law either and can themselves create problems -although they normally act reasonably.

[Scotbrite]

You employed this person yourself after i presume a proper interview & made your own judgement on the person (or you wouldn't have employed them) In my view the employer should always stand by their employee's but follow the correct procedures in dealing with all asects of this situation until & unless proved otherwise Stay professional & as Rick says speak to acas first.

[Peter Gorman]

You don't have to do anything at the moment as it is the hands of the police and they will investigate, If they find that one of the girls has taken it then you use disciplinary procedures

[martin19842]

hi there

i have had this in the past on office cleans, where items go missing and the cleaners get blamed.  i always met the client and insisted that the poicve were called so to clear the matter up one way or the other.  however you wouldbe amazed at the reluctace to call in the police, so i would say that either that action took place, or it was the end off the matter.

i have also had it where items went missing from an office,a nd after listening to the client the only option was the cleaner as the alarm audit proved it, i then spok to cleaner, and suggested that if by soime mistake items had been taken, dn they were returned within a certain time, no action would be taken, hey ho they returned the items, made the company i was working for at the time look like a bunch of idiots.

but stand by your staff, and your reputation, and hope it isnt proved that they were involved, delicate situation.

regards

martin