This has been a particularly hard year for everyone and many people are facing significant hardships. Along with the frustrations of lockdown, social distancing and face masks and furlough, many people are faced with losing their livelihoods.
For the vast majority of people facing these hardships this will mean tightening their belts and getting on with life in the best way possible. However, for a significant number it will mean being opportunistic about acquiring or making money in ways that will hurt retail businesses, whether this is through shoplifting or more organised groups working within the business.
For the organised groups the demands of Covid give unprecedented opportunities, wearing a disguise in the form of a face mask will go unnoticed and behaviour which in other times might arise suspicion are more likely to be overlooked.
This will apply not only in store situations but also warehouse and delivery operations. Potential rogue employees will be counting on the fact that employers will not have the time or the resources to carry out even the most basic background checks. This may apply particularly where
people have applied for second jobs and been recruited quickly.
Some may think that the money spent on background checks is just another cost never to be recuperated but this is not true, the cost of checking can be recovered many times over.