Security heightened in Caf amidst theft

Posted by admin on Jan 19, 2010 in News | 0 comments

Most of us have learned not to bite the hand that feeds you, so when Trinity Western University’s food services started noticing theft in the cafeteria, they planned on putting an end to it.

“In December, [theft] sky rocketed as far as food being taken without being paid for in the cafeteria,” said Chris Fox, director of dining and catering services at TWU. Examples that the Sodexo staff has seen include people drinking fountain pop and refilling it before purchase, eating their food while waiting at the grill stations, or putting items in their bag.

“We have had two vending machines that have been crow-bared into, and all the products were taken and all the money,” said Fox. “We need to protect both ourselves and our students.”

Erin MacLean, manager of catering services at TWU, confirms that no cameras will be used for preventing stealing. “[Security] isn’t in there to just be watching students,” said MacLean. “They’re actually in there being social as well. They’re there to make sure questions of their presence will be answered.”

The security team will not only be checking the main cafeteria, but also the lower cafeteria. “Our presence will mostly be preventive. Hopefully by our presence people will think twice before they do something,” said Rink Beeksma, manager of security at TWU.
Other forms of stealing in the cafeteria have occurred as well.

In the beginning of September, Sodexo began to enforce a new regulation for meal cards. Essentially, students purchasing food with a student identification card must be prepared to prove who they are with a secondary piece of identification. This idea was made to prevent student food card theft which has happened often in the past.

Despite the fact that stealing has been occurring, Fox makes it clear that “we try to be as fair as possible and make the cafeteria feel like a kitchen away from home.”

In addition, Sodexo gives back to students by putting on promotions like the Pizza Program during exam period, Karaoke night, and proving food for events like Student Previews. “The more things that get stolen, unfortunately, the less money comes in, meaning a smaller budget for promotions,” said Fox.

A lot of the students look at the cashiers as friends, however, “if they see [theft] they will write your name and card number down and it will be followed from there. We don’t want our cashiers going up to students and accusing them, so we do have to watch them, because ideally [theft] will affect someone down the road,” said Fox.

Similarly, “[consequences] depend on the situation, but we’ll start for sure with a firm chat about the theft,” said Beeksma.
It is possible that the price of food is a factor for cafeteria theft, but Sodexo is willing to take those matters into consideration. If students are stuck in financial situations, Fox says that his office doors are always open and he will be available to help them budget and inform them of the best food options for their needs.