Employee Theft: A Profile of Staff Dishonesty in the Retail Sector

Data are presented on staff dishonesty in the electrical retail sector deriving from a 1991 survey of 55 Dixons stores in the Dixons Stores Group. Two hundred and seventy seven staff were interviewed about their colleagues' involvement in crime. The survey addressed seven interrelated questions: how many staff steal?, which staff steal?, what do staff steal?, why do staff steal?, where do staff steal from?, do staff get caught? and what stops staff theft? The data add an empirical dimension to an important, but neglected and inaccessible area.