How to Deal With Pencil Thieves in the Workplace

The theft of workplace supplies is a common problem in many offices. The key to prevention is a balance between letting everything go and resorting to draconian policies that alienate workers. Finding the balance will help you deal with the pencil thieves and paper rustlers.

Instructions

1. Avoid over-reacting. Responding aggressively to every lost item in the office quickly become ridiculous. The problem is that the "average" workplace contract does not include strict policies on work materials; there's generally no strategy, no order and no oversight. Since people have to commonly use objects, and can't logically be prevented from accessing them, everything that's not tied down can disappear. But, dealing with the problem means taking a laid-back view and using reasonable means to control loss.

2. Monitor the office. Take a quick pencil count on walk-throughs. You also want to label supplies that you consider high-value, tagging them with colors or other markers so that you can see what's happening to them.

3. Protect your own workspace. Although there are usually no direct agreements on items sitting in common work spaces, you do have a right to defend your own space from scavengers. If you find someone visiting your cubicle when you're not around, sit down and have a frank discussion.

4. If the stuff that's being lost is communal stuff, you have two more options to deal with "general loss" over time. You can get employees on a rotation for buying replacements (either from petty cash or from their own wallets), or you can set up a rationing system that will help identify how items are lost by divvying them out carefully on specified days of the week.

5. Make each person responsible for their own pencils and other stuff. Have everyone keep track of his or her own stash so that you can limit how much gets "lost in the mix."