You and four others are the “bar team” in an upscale restaurant. Everyone works very well together—so well that you pool your tips and divide them equally at the end of each shift. Recently, management has voiced concerns about liquor costs being too high. You know that part of that is because the bartenders “pour heavy” when mixing drinks, but that doesn’t account for all of the costs. A couple of weeks ago you were working with Nathan and noticed that he didn’t seem to be ringing all of his cash sales into the cash register. It appeared that he was just putting the cash into the bar team tip box. The next day you talked with another team member Jamie about it and the two of you started paying more attention to what Nathan was doing. You have come to the conclusion that Nathan isn’t recording all of his cash sales, but you have no real proof.
1. What is the potential conflict? 2. What could be negotiated to resolve the situation and prevent future conflict? 3. Do you have any obligation to Nathan as a fellow member of the bar team? 4. Do you have an obligation to voice your suspicions to management? 5. What risks do you face if you do/do not speak up? 6. Based on your value system, what would you do?
