DEVIANCE IN THE FAST-FOOD RESTAURANT - CORRELATES OF EMPLOYEE THEFT, ALTRUISM, AND COUNTER PRODUCTIVITY

Existing research suggests that employee deviance is highest in occupational settings that rely heavily on "marginal" workers-especially those who are young with little tenure-who believe that they are treated unfairly by their employers. As a test of this proposition, an anonymous survey was conducted among a two-company national sample of 341 fast-food restaurant workers. Three fifths of the respondents reported some level of personal involvement in theft of company property during the previous 6 months. In addition, more than one third were involved in "altruistic" forms of property deviance. Moreover, four fifths of the respondents reported involvement in counterproductive activities against the organization. Contrary to expectations, a slightly different explanatory solution emerged for each of the three forms of employee deviance. Personal property deviance was principally a function of age and perceived employer unfairness-both interacting with tenure. Involvement in altruistic property deviance was solely a function of age-engaged in almost exclusively by employees younger than 21 years. Production deviance, alternatively, was a by-product of perceived employer unfairness regardless of age or tenure with the company. In sum, these findings suggest that employee deviance may not be as much a unidimensional phenomenon as was previously believed.