Risk Management Statistics

SSI Equipment Supply!

• The failure of forty percent (40%) of U.S. businesses is directly linked to employee theft.
• Fraud and abuse costs U.S. organizations more than $400 billion annually.
• In the retail industry in 2001, 60% to 70% of total losses were due to proven employee theft.
• The average organization loses more than $9.00 per day per employee to fraud and abuse.
• The average organization loses about 6% of its total annual revenue to fraud and abuse committed by its own employees.
• The Insurance Institute of America indicates, 65% to 75% of all merchandise losses come from inside stealing by employees.
• The owner of a major restaurant chain recently stated, "two out of three of our employees steal on a regular basis".
• The most costly cases of fraud and abuse occur in organizations with less than 100 employees.
• Employee theft cost U.S. retailers $14.9 billion in 2001.
• Honest employees stole $160 billion last year by wasting time on the job.
• Background screening revealed more than 40 million Americans used fraudulent resumes or false statements on job applications to obtain a job.
• Background screens on pre-employment and current employees revealed 75% had an undisclosed criminal history.
• Your employees are 20 times more likely to steal from you than your customers.
• The typical perpetrator of theft from an employer is a college-educated white male.
• While any employee at any time is theoretically capable of committing a theft from their employer, it is interesting to note that the average tenure of employment of those caught for theft from their employer is nine years. It is thought that many long term employees decide that they are under paid and unappreciated and therefore feel justified in the theft.
• Losses caused by managers are four times those caused by hourly employees.
• Median losses caused by executives are 16 times those of their employees.
• A recognized authority on security in the supermarket and food industry states that "76% of all employees steal".

Where Risk is found

• Employee Theft - 46%
• Customer Theft - 30.6%
• Administrative Error - 17.6%
• Vendor Fraud - 5.8%

      This is a list of a few facts pertaining to losses at companies in the United States. No losses due to workers compensation or lawsuits have been included.

What can a business owner or manager do to protect their company from dishonest employees?

• Know who works for you, with pre-employment background screenings.
• Utilize closed circuit television (CCTV). Covertly for employee theft and overtly for customer theft and fraud.
• Utilize investigative and security services, to deter theft and investigate when theft has been detected.
• Prosecute to the fullest extent of the law when a theft has been proven.
• Never count any employee out as a suspect.

      Smart Security and Investigations will be happy to meet with you and develop your own custom theft prevention plan for your business.