My Boss Steals From the Till. Should I Tell?

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Dear Stanley,

I work for a charitable organization, but my boss is everything but charitable. Besides stealing, he’s unbearably rude. I am a very hard worker, but he does everything to make my job harder. My boss never says anything good about my performance on the job, and it’s obvious he doesn’t like me. My co-workers respect me and the customers love me. I spoke with our supervisors about my problems, and since then everything has gotten worse. What should I do?

Signed,

Non-profit Pete

Dear Pete,

It’s amazing to me how many buttheads work in a field you’d think would be inhabited mostly by Mother Teresas. In fact, sometimes I think that a disproportionate number of the most obnoxious people work in the non-profit and charitable field. Maybe it’s because they can tell themselves they’re good citizens because of what they do — and don’t have to adhere to any rules otherwise.

I used to work for a guy who ran a small, not-for-profit theater in the Northeast. He, too, stole liberally from the organization’s coffers, maybe because he had the whole “L’etat c’est moi” headset that people in positions of power sometimes do. He bought a watch with the proceeds from grants that we got — because hey, why not, doesn’t the King of the Theater need to know what time it is? He paid for his apartment across the street from the theater with grant proceeds, too — because hey, doesn’t the King of the Theater need a suitable place to live? At the same time, he was a total jerk to all of his employees: high-handed, mean, never a nice word to anybody. Only the total kiss-ups got gentle treatment now and then. We all made $87.50 a week, as I recall, while he lived as a lord of the demesne.

Now, you would think that somebody in a higher authority — like his board of directors, which nominally ran the non-profit — would have been onto this petty Napoleon. And you would be right. They knew everything. But just like your experience with your tyrant’s supervisors, they were thrilled with him. They agreed with everything he did. They probably ordered the wine at the dinners paid for by contributors. For them — as well as for himself — this guy represented the organization. What he said was law. There was no differentiation between him and It. So how could he be in violation of anything?

In such an environment, workers band together against the creepy authority figure who is jobbing the system. Customers, who know nothing of the situation, are greeted by the good people, not the bad one. So for all appearances, what is created, at least on the surface, is a customer-friendly enterprise staffed by people who tend to be a tight-knit, well-bonded group. And the evil emperor can look around and tell himself, “See? This is the way things should be run. I’m a genius. I think I’ll have some more Chateaubriand.”

What to do? You have several power points, should you choose to employ them. The first is contained in your little clause, “Besides stealing…” Is he genuinely is doing so? If yes, he’s filching money that was given to a charity. People get into serious trouble for that kind of stuff. If you doubt that, Google “United Way scandal” and see what pops up. You can also look into the way money has been managed at a number of other charitable organizations. A lot of folks are much more aware these days about how much of their dollar is actually spent on the needy when they contribute to a cause. The organizations that spend 80 percent of every dollar on staff and administration are being called to account. If you have the goods on this bozo, bring it to somebody’s attention. I’m betting you complained to the supervisors about his behavior, not his honesty. Naturally, they’re going to side with him over little old you. And if the supervisors are in his pocket, there’s always the media — either print or online. Hell, you don’t even need to be guilty of anything to be tried and convicted on the Internet.

If the idea of that turns your stomach, I’m going to suggest you do something just as odious: Live with it. You said it yourself. The customers love you. Your colleagues love you. Screw the boss. He’ll eventually get what’s coming to him. Who knows? You may even outlive him. Many employees do. If he’s not firing you? Hang in there.