2.  All item pricing will be done by machine, not by hand.

3.  Restrict price setting to authorized personnel.

4.  Do not permit bags, totes, or lunch boxes at work stations.

5.  Cash drawer should be proved at the end of every shift.

Employee discontent and personal financial difficulties have been shown to be the major causes of employee theft and misconduct.

Steps should be taken to institute or improve your company’s internal controls:

1.  Hiring Procedures

Careful screening of all potential new hires is important.  Consult with a labor attorney on the best method to screen and hire the appropriate applicant.

2.  Separation of Duties

Different employees should be responsible for each aspect of a function;  ie. the same person who order/receives merchandise should not be responsible for paying bills.  The same employee should not write checks, sign checks, and reconcile bank statements.

3.  Payroll

Managers or supervisors should sign all employee time cards to confirm hours worked.

4.  Building Security

Buildings should be well lit and should have a burglar alarm.  Only authorized personnel should have keys/access to buildings.

Management must uniformly enforce standards of honesty and ethical conduct.

TO BE CONTINUED

In the current economic climate and high unemployment many of you are contemplating starting your own business.

There are many advantages to being self employed; set your own hours, be your own boss, etc.  But there are also many drawbacks;

long hours, little or no pay initially, and having to deal with tax, accounting, and government regulations that are unfamiliar.

There are some steps that you should take BEFORE starting a business:

1.  Educate your self.  There are many free resources available that offer classes, seminars, and workshops on topics that are pertinent to the new business owner.  Check with your local Chamber of Commerce and SCORE.

2. Improve and clean up your personal finances.  Without a credit score of at least 700 you will not be able to borrow money.  Pay your bills on time.  Do not apply for any additional credit.  Resolve disputes with any credit card companies and/or others.  Get your free credit report at www. annualcreditreport.com.  Request your FICO score; this you will have to pay for at:  www.myfico.com.  Be aware that there is no free money/grants available to start a business.  If you do not have enough personal funds to cover your business and personal expenses for at least three years, you will have to borrow money at some point.

3.  Get advise from a lawyer and an accountant.  They are worth their price.  There advice and guidance will save you time and money in the long run.

In their first contact the collection agency must provide you with the name of the creditor, the amount of the initial debt, a breakdown of penalties and interest, and an explanation of your rights.  If the agency calls instead of writes request the information in writing.  They must respond to this request within 5 days.

Start a file to record all phone calls and keep all correspondence.

If you do not owe the debt, write a letter disputing the claim to both the collection agency and the creditor.  Include details and all supporting documentation.  Be sure to keep copies of all for your file.

Do not accept harassment from collectors.  They are prohibited from calling between the hours of 9:00pm and 8:00am and from using abusive or threatening language.  Write to the agency to not call; they must abide by your request.

If you do owe the debt; come up with a plan to repay.  It should be a plan that you can live with so the collection agency will not contact you again, when you can not pay according to plan.

Last, but not least, if harassment continues you can file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov)