“Common Practice To Take Goods From Factory”

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28606, 7 June 1958, Page 14

“Common Practice To Take Goods From Factory”

(New Zealand Press Association)

. AUCKLAND, June 6. Evidence that it was “common practice” at a Great South road plastics factory for employees to take home plastic goods, was given when seven men pleaded not guilty in the Auckland Magistrate’s Court today to charges of theft of plastic goods from Plastic Moulders. Ltd. Mr R. M Grant, S.M., reserved his decision for a week. The taking of plastic goods had been a problem for years, said Henry Terence Nolan, factory manager for the company, but police inquiries had only been instigated after the disappearance of nearly 1500 plastic buckets, worth about £3OO at wholesale rates.

Sometimes permission was given for. rejects to be taken away if they were to be used for raising money for charitable purposes, he said. Otherwise, rejects could be crushed to powder and passed

through the moulding machines again. Replying to counsel, the witness said that no notices had ever been posted warning employees not to take goods. Mr Grant: It is not a practice of commercial life for employers to put up notices saying: “Don’t steal stock.” Police evidence was given of plastic goods being found at the homes of the accused. Statements obtained agreed that it was the common thing to take goods. One said: “If you don’t do it you feel out of it. Everybody does it.” Another said: “I know that strictly I had no right to the things I took, but I regarded them as perks of the job,” All the accused denied making any attempt to get rid of the goods, although they knew they were liable to be searched by the police.