Every cashier has a short till eventually. What decides whether it becomes a problem is almost never the amount. It is what you did in the ten minutes after you found out, and whether the shift can be reconstructed.
At the end of a shift the money in the drawer is counted against what the till says should be there. Short means less money than the system expected. Over means more, and over is also a mistake, not a bonus.
Before you panic, check the ordinary causes. Most shortages are one of these:
- The float at the start was not what you assumed
- A refund or a void was done without being rung up properly
- Change was given from a note the customer changed halfway through
- A colleague used your till while you were on break
- The count itself was rushed, so count again, slowly, before reporting a number
Then report it yourself, in writing if you can. Say the amount, the time you counted, and anything unusual you remember. A supervisor who hears it from you is dealing with an error. A supervisor who finds it themselves is dealing with a question about you.
Never make it up out of your own pocket. It hides the cause, so the same thing happens again next week, and in many shops it is against policy and looks worse than the shortage.
Your till is R80 short and you are certain you did nothing wrong.
What happens: It will not balance out, and the pattern of small unexplained shortages on your shifts is exactly what gets people dismissed. Silence turns one R80 error into a record.
What happens: Correct. Counting again is free and catches a rushed count. Reporting it with detail lets somebody check the void log or the camera, which is how a shortage gets explained rather than attached to you.
Will I have to pay it back?
Your employer may not simply take it off your pay. A deduction for damage or loss needs your written agreement and a fair process first, under the Basic Conditions of Employment Act. If you are told money will come off your wages, ask for it in writing and ask which agreement it is based on. If you need help, the Department of Employment and Labour and the CCMA both take questions like this.
Someone else used my till
Say so straight away, with the time. It is not blaming a colleague, it is a fact the supervisor needs, and most till systems record which operator was signed in. This is also the reason to sign out whenever you step away, even for two minutes.
My till is over. Is that fine?
No. Over means a customer somewhere was short changed, which is the mistake that loses a shop its regulars. Report an over exactly the way you would report a short.
Check what you know
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