Archived What happens to TLs who have been caught stealing?

[whippingboy]

Because I'm super nosy and found out a TL at our store got caught discounting lobster tails down to $4 a piece for their own, I'm curious - does something like this stick on their record forever? Does it prevent him/her from being promoted to Sr. Team Lead or does it drop off the record at some point?

 

[commiecorvus]

Fired, escorted out in handcuffs.

Did I miss anything?

 

[GSTLQueen]

Depending on your store a few things can happen. They are fired, go on a CA, get a coaching or nothing.

 

[forgetfulSDA]

If someone is caught marking unauthorized markdowns and AP can prove the case they are fired. Plain and simple. It does not matter if you are a TM or the STL if you steal you are going bye bye with charges to follow. If that TL is currently still employed then the case became an HR issue and they were most likely put on a final warning.

 

[redeye58]

Anything theft-related (including marking down merch) is automatic term.
No second chances on that.

 

[AssetsProtection]

Could range to a seek to understand or a termination. Was it for themselves? Did they ring themselves up? Different factors . I dont know the price of lobster tails btw.

 

[Nauzhror]

Lowering the price of an item doesn't really seem theft. Not without full context anyway. I mean, otherwise I am stealing from Target every time I do a guest price challenge :s

 

[luna831]

Target says that you can mark down the price for the guests

 

[AssetsProtection]

Lowering the price of an item doesn't really seem theft. Not without full context anyway. I mean, otherwise I am stealing from Target every time I do a guest price challenge :s

Unauthorized discounts. Trending stuff like that.

Sure you could discount something once and get away with it. However too big and too much someones going to look into it. Remember its not just someone in your store always watching you.

 

[commiecorvus]

Target says that you can mark down the price for the guests

But not for yourself or your friends.

 

[luna831]

Ok thanks

 

[Nauzhror]

Target says that you can mark down the price for the guests

But not for yourself or your friends.

Yourself seems blatantly obvious.

That friend portion I could see being problematic. If a team member told me an item that rung up at $19.99 was supposed to be $9.99 I'd probably change it for them without a second thought, Not because, I'm more loyal to TMs than Target, I'd just assume they knew how to read the sign and check that it was right item, and trust that they wouldn't jeopardize their job to save $10.

If it turn out they were lying though, who'd be likely to get in trouble? Them, or both of us? (Them seems too obvious for me to even question if it'd be just me in the doghouse.)

 

[NeoDarikona]

Context is important. Is it a personal markdown? Depending on the persons history and severity it could just be a simple bitching out.

 

[whippingboy]

It was for themselves. No he/she didn't ring themselves up; the cashiers don't know the difference. Lobster tails are 13.99 a piece. And this person is still there, so it will be interesting to see how this affects their performance in the near future. However, he/she was involved with getting subordinates fired last year for marking down chubs of meat in the deli, so the TL obviously knows better.

 

[APredux]

Something about this smells fishy (pun intended). If they truly were marking down lobster tails for themselves and then buying them at the reduced price without placing them on the salesfloor, that would be a term-able offense. Keep in mind that just because the TL is still working now doesn't mean they will be tomorrow, or next week. Investigations into dishonest behavior do take time.

Was this discounting lobster tails thing just a rumor that might not be true? Were they discounting them, placing them on the salesfloor, then at the end of their shift buying them from the floor? Is AP not active in your store/not aware of what happened, and the TL was "caught" by their ETL who just wants to push it under the rug?

If this person slides by it wouldn't be the first time an employee has acted dishonestly and kept their job. As we know, in the real world, not every person suffers the consequences of their misdeeds. But generally speaking, that behavior would not be tolerated.

 

[Nauzhror]

If a team member told me an item that rung up at $19.99 was supposed to be $9.99 I'd probably change it for them without a second thought, Not because, I'm more loyal to TMs than Target, I'd just assume they knew how to read the sign and check that it was right item, and trust that they wouldn't jeopardize their job to save $10.

If it turn out they were lying though, who'd be likely to get in trouble? Them, or both of us? (Them seems too obvious for me to even question if it'd be just me in the doghouse.)

Actually curious about this hypothetical scenario, would trusting a team member on a pricing issue lead to the cashier being punished, or just the team member purchasing the items?

This is, assuming the price change is at least sorta reasonable. $19.99->$9.99 etc., not $500.00->$10.00. I could see believing that a $20 item is 50% off, I wouldn't believe that a 40" TV was $5, ever.

 

[Mhugh220]

We've fired TMs, TLs, and ETLs for doing exactly that. No one is safe from marking stuff down for personal gain.

 

[Nauzhror]

I was more asking who got fired. The cashier for trusting their team, or the person lying to the cashier?

 

[Retail Girl]

I was more asking who got fired. The cashier for trusting their team, or the person lying to the cashier?

If I have to take a guest's word for it, I have to take a TM's word for it. It would be on the TM who lied, not the one who was doing their job and trusting the "guest." Though if it were done enough times through the same TM, then they might fire both if they could prove both were in on it.

But what happens to TMs and above at my store who get caught stealing? It depends on how well liked you are.

 

[Nauzhror]

If I have to take a guest's word for it, I have to take a TM's word for it. It would be on the TM who lied, not the one who was doing their job and trusting the "guest."

Okay, that was what I hoped, but I was wondering if I should start verifying every small price change when the guest in questions is a TM if that wasn't the case.

 

[whippingboy]

A team member got fired at my store for ringing up discounted items for another team member. Granted, it was over a period of months. But it eventually caught up to both of them, even though the cashier said she was unaware of the discounts.

@APredux this TL has done many things in the past but his/her ETL has swept them all under the rug. This time, caught by team members, who brought it to the APTL directly. Hard to sweep that under the rug. With the responses I'm seeing, I'd guess it never drops off their record, as far as promotions or even raises in the future. This TL can't seem to get fired though.

 

[redeye58]

There's a few TMs at my store I wouldn't trust as far as I could fling them....

 

[SFTOnThree]

In my store, anyone who steals gets matching bracelets and a walk of shame.....
Nothing makes me smile more 🙂

 

[Nauzhror]

There's a few TMs at my store I wouldn't trust as far as I could fling them....

Depends on the kind of trust one means. There's many I deem incompetent, but none I have ever caught lying to me. That's not say they're all trustworthy, but I'm more likely to trust in their honesty than in their capability.

 

[redeye58]

Many are the ones I've caught stealing from FA & SB.