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Case Studies
Chaotic sales record
Diana, an assistant manager at a chain fast-food restaurant, oversaw daily sales. She misappropriated sales revenue and discount coupons for an extended period, resulting in chaotic and unclear financial records.
This situation persisted until Daisy, a newly hired cashier, noticed numerous irregularities in the restaurant's sales records. She suspected Diana was manipulating the sales data for personal gain. Noticing Daisy’s suspicion and to conceal her misconduct, Diana approached Daisy and promised to give Daisy 10% of the misappropriated funds if Daisy assisted in inputting false sales and coupon redemption records into the cash register system. Daisy was caught in a dilemma as she knew this was wrong but could not resist the temptation of quick money. Eventually, under Diana’s persistent persuasion, Daisy succumbed and agreed to help Diana conceal everything.
Although Daisy cooperated with Diana’s fraudulent activities, the chaotic and suspicious sales records eventually drew the attention of the restaurant manager. Daisy felt uneasy about this situation and struggled with whether to reveal the truth to the manager.
Case Analysis
Employees of restaurants should always exercise prudence and integrity when managing sales. If Daisy abuses her position to accept advantages for providing assistance to Diana in concealing the illegal misappropriation of the restaurant sales, she might commit Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) and conspiracy to defraud. Diana might also commit the offences.
Employees must uphold a high standard of integrity and refrain from reaping personal gain through corrupt or other illegal means. When encountering corruption temptation or suspecting any malpractice in the workplace, employees should immediately decline and report the incident to the company and the ICAC. Deliberately concealing or shielding unlawful behaviour may give rise to suspicions of involvement in illegal activities. Hence, it is crucial to take a stand against corruption and report it to the ICAC.