Protect Your House Cleaning Business from Employee Theft

It's a terrifying statistic for business owners, but a recent study found that 75% of people have stolen from an employer at least once. Often, the theft is small and easy for home cleaning business owners to overlook — like taking a bottle of water from a client's refrigerator or claiming 15 minutes that weren't actually worked.

The bigger problem is when these little transgressions become a habitual problem. Employee theft of client property, supplies, equipment, and time costs businesses $50 billion dollars a year, and is responsible for one-third of business bankruptcies. Residential cleaning business owners must be especially vigilant about theft because most employees work off-site and unsupervised.

Employee theft of costs businesses $50 billion dollars a year!

Protect Supplies and Equipment from Employee Theft

Store Inventory in a Separate Space: Most house cleaning companies have a lot of extra supplies on hand. It would be embarrassing to run out, and bulk orders are important for securing the best prices. Unfortunately, these supplies are often small, easy to steal, and may not be missed when they disappear only in small quantities.

If you seem to be going through supplies more quickly than you'd expect, it could be a case of employee theft. Use a tracking log to have staff itemize what they remove. If one employee is using twice as much product as your other staff, you know who needs retraining or extra supervision.

Limit Access to Expensive Equipment: Every staff member doesn't need access to every piece of equipment. If you own company vehicles, be certain each staff member with access to the keys is covered by your insurance policy and has a clean driving record and current license. You also probably own expensive, specialized cleaning equipment. Again, limit the usage of these items to your most trusted employees who have been properly trained on the machines.

Protect Your Clients from Employee Theft

Your clients are entrusting their home and property to you so it's your responsibility to protect them from dishonest people that you unknowingly send into their home.

The first step in protecting your clients from employee theft is to hire honest people. That means doing reference checks, background checks and drug testing. By doing due diligence from the start you reduce your risk and protect clients from potential theft from employees.

Have a zero tolerance policy explicitly stated in your employee handbook. Theft is grounds for immediate termination and may be reported to police. Be sure to cover how employees should report theft to management, and give examples of theft – client property, company property and cash, falsifying time reported.

Engage Your Employees

Conduct Frequent Training: Cleaning companies can't grow without well-trained staff. Providing employees with continuing education and providing opportunities for advancement will make your employees feel more invested in the business. This reduces employee turnover, creates more satisfied employees, and strengthens the employee-employer relationship—and those factors can reduce the amount of employee theft a business experiences.

Create a Positive Atmosphere: As a business owner, it's up to you to create a work environment that's not only safe but also enjoyable for employees. When people enjoy going to work and value their position within a company, they are far less likely to steal time, supplies, or equipment from your business. Company culture starts at the top; role model the behaviors you want to see in your employees, and continually remind your staff that you value, respect, and appreciate them.

Perform Background Checks and Drug Tests: You need to know who works for you. Conducting background on new employees and regular drug tests on your entire staff can help identify any potential problem employees. Screenings are also valuable in terms of reducing your insurance liability and in assuring your customers that your staff is reliable and trustworthy.

Track Employee Time: Time theft is a big issue for a lot of cleaning business owners. While occasional overages can be expected, you should know how long each job typically takes. If cleaning a particular home usually takes three hours, you'll want to take a closer when a technician consistently reports that it took her 3.5 hours. The employee either needs more training or may be guilty of time theft.

Improve Your Processes

Keep Financial Records Separate: Your business's sensitive information should be safeguarded the same way you safeguard your own identity. Many experts in employee theft recommend that financial statements be sent to a separate P.O. Box or to the business owner's home address to keep financial information secure and out of a potentially dangerous employee‘s hands.

Most employees don't need to access your business accounts. If they drive a company vehicle, they may need to use a company fuel card. These cards should be stored in a secure place, and receipts should be submitted and reviewed to ensure employees aren't using company money to pay for personal purchases.

Review Client Lists Regularly: One of the easiest ways for a bookkeeper or accountant to steal money is to create a vendor that doesn't exist and then transfer “payments”. Even if you trust your employees, it's important to routinely review your accounts and client lists to verify that all incoming and outgoing money matches the amount listed on the invoice. If you don't recognize a transaction, don't be afraid to ask questions. On average, employee theft goes on for over two years before an investigation.

Separate Responsibilities: Whenever possible, it's best to divide responsibilities among employees. Failing to do this can leave one person with far too much power and too little supervision. For example, when the same person orders supplies, pays the invoice, and manages the inventory, who is keeping tabs to make sure the process is theft-free?

A healthy system of checks and balances may mean you have one person who orders the product, another who handles payment, and a third who adds shipment into inventory. When employees know others are watching they are far less likely to steal. It also allows more employees to be watching out for and reporting errors.

Your employees are your best assets. They can also be your downfall. By making a few small changes to your day-to-day operations, you can minimize your risk and ensure your business thrives.