Colleague is stealing from me

Hi everyone.

I work from home as a receptionist and I take bookings for an agency. So my colleague holds the main work number and when I am on shift, the phone is diverted to me to take calls and make bookings. As the holder of the main phone, she is paid to pass txt messages to me.

A few weeks ago, a client called me and asked why I was taking so long arranging his booking. I explained I hadn't taken any enquiries from him and then he told me he had been texting me since that morning. It then came to light my colleague stole this client from me and didn't pass on the txt to me. Now, I work for commission only so for her to steal the booking is essentially stealing money from me.

I brought this to the attention of my boss who spoke to her about it and gave her a warning. This is all well and good but today I checked the diary and she has A LOT of advanced bookings which tells me she is still stealing advanced booking txts.

I have no idea what to do about this. What would you do? The only real solution is that I take the main phone and pass on txts like she is supposed to be doing. This means more work for me, which I don't really want but I don't know what else to do. Should I talk to her about it, tell her I am aware of all the advanced bookings she getting?

I am so angry and so frustrated at the same time. I hate to think how many bookings she has stolen during the past 4 yrs

Tell your boss again, she has already had a warning and this should give your boss grounds to give her the boot.

I just told my boss and she said she would speak to her. The problem is, I have no proof she is still doing this. I can't go on like this knowing she is stealing off me.

I suggested I do the main phone and the point blank told me, no!

I feel like I am obsessed with the thought she is doing this. It is bringing me to tears and I can't do anything about it.

This is a good thing you talked to your boss first. You did the right thing.

I am worried about one thing in your thinking though:

First you stated that you have no proof this is happening, and then you state that you "know" she is stealing off of you but if you have no evidence, do you really know that it is happening at all? I'm not questioning your intelligence at all I am just saying, be careful, sometimes the paranoid thinking makes us assume things that aren't actual facts.

Well I caught her doing it once, and she is still getting loads of advanced bookings which is telling me she is still doing it. I have no proof she is doing it now, but I have proof she has done it before. I am sick even thinking about it. And I am not having a very good day either, it all just feels too much today

Well I can understand that perspective you have but until you have evidence there isn't much you can do. BE proactive. Just like the way you found out about your client being stolen, let your clients be the ones to tell you. Ask them to let you know if anything changes, be as prompt as you can in replying or helping them. Let them know if something isn't right to contact you directly? That way you can look into it and find the evidence you need. If indeed she continues to do this, there are ways to find out and she should be fired for it if she is doing this.

My boss's response was pretty much 'well she has worked for me for years, always been reliable, loyal and never off sick' ...well hell the same applies to me! I told her, if it had been her she'd stolen from things would be different, I am so close to telling them to go shove their job and look elsewhere. I know that is completely stupid but it's how I feel. I am so emotional today anyway and this just isn't helping. I am looking at other agencies as we speak......

And it sounds like a brush off to me, I don't blame you actually. If that's all it takes for him/her to look the other way... you're not in the right place and really should find a different place to work. When you leave and they see how she can't get her own connections but only steals thy will realize that you're worth more as an employee. This is all assuming it's what's happening and it sounds ike you have a good idea that it is.

What your boss said is just wrong. id did nothing to address your concern and "always been reliable, loyal and never off sick" has absolutely Zero to do with the issue of theft. Because I'm always at my job and never sick, that gives me the right to do anything I want? Sounds like your employer has a skewed perspective on what they want for an employee.

I can't add anything but support and another voice recommending you look for employment elsewhere. Mean time CYA...make sure your contacts can reach you directly.

Would be nice to think, once you've found another place, your boss will see how this colleague is in fact stealing as she cannot do her job without others input first...but unfortunately, that is more of a childlike response to perceived unfairness. The kid runs away, and the parents realize their responsibility etc and beg the child to return. Just doesn't happen. Or rarely happens in the work place. Besides, even if it DID happen, after the comment your boss made....would you ever consider returning to work (after finding another job) just because your boss finally fired the thieving colleague? Especially, as you've mentioned, the criteria used to absolve her of guilt, is equal to yours, yet....you're not a thief ... rather the injured party?

What will more likely happen, is after you find other employment, your boss will find someone to replace you (because you were so adamantly shut down when you suggested taking the phone directly) and the colleague will continue to steal from that person until that person wises up and then quits and so on and so on....the dynamic between your colleague and your boss is curious, to say the least.

At any rate...take care of yourself. Like S4ndm4n suggests, don't over cook the goose, but definitely start looking for other digs......and when you're ready to move on...do so. Without a snarly goodbye or dire warnings to your boss. It won't impress or change their mind, but it will lessen your worth to them.....keep your head up, march on...knowing, you were right and eventually....what goes around, comes around. I've never seen it fail.

Take care

Thanks

I spoke to my boss again and she said if it happened again, she will give me the phone. I have looked elsewhere in my filed but there isn't anything around right now. I left my number with a couple of agencies so will see how it goes.

I cannot afford to walk away from this job without another to go to, so for now, I will just stick with it and see how it goes. I love my job but this has really tainted it for me.

Hopefully my colleague is now too scared to do it again, since she has been caught once doing it. I will, for now, put this to rest in my head otherwise it will drive me crazy and would probably end up walking away from it where nowhere else to go.

Thanks for your input guys

I think it's a shame when employers pit staff against each other. It would be better if commission was split between you all.

I don't think that would work for us, especially since 2 colleagues don't pull in half the work that myself and colleague in question does.

Thanks for your input though.