Barbara Emme worked 31 years for supermarket chain Kaisers in Berlin. She denies an accusation by her former employer that she kept bottle deposit receipts worth $1.65.

A court recently upheld the decision to fire her. Now, leaders of Germany’s major political parties are criticizing the decisions by Kaisers and the court.

“I don’t understand how a cashier can be fired because of 1.30 euros while managers who lose billions of euros can keep their jobs,” said Horst Seehofer, leader of the Christian Social Union party.

Barbara the Cashier says her phone has been ringing off the hook since news of her firing hit German media.

Unfortunately, she says she hasn’t received an offer of a new job.

Suraj Samaroo recently pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $400,000 from an IKEA call center in Baltimore, MD.

Samaroo learned all he needed to know to skim the money in less than six months.

Prosecutors say he would issue himself refunds for purchases made by customers and then alter inventory records to cover his tracks.

At least he was generous with the money: He gave some of it to friends and family.

Samaroo faces a maximum of 15 years in prison. He’s admitted his actions were motivated by “pure greed.”

Calling it an act of mercy, an employer has decided to allow a warehouse worker to collect his pension despite the fact that he stole on the job.

George Seeholzer was fired by the town of Palm Beach, FL, for allegedly stealing four car tires from the town’s warehouse and selling them for $250 on the Internet.

Now the Town Council has voted 4-1 to allow him to still collect his pension of $15,700 a year. He’ll also be allowed to retain his medical benefits at a cost of $172 a month, which is half the premium. He was a 12-year employee of the town.

Council members’ reasoning: They say Seeholzer, who is 66, is in poor health and would have lost his health benefits along with the pension. One council member called his situation “heartbreaking.”

Employees of Palm Beach terminated for unethical conduct aren’t eligible for their pension unless the council takes the unusual step of deciding to let them have it, according to the Palm Beach Daily News.

Seeholzer’s firing cost him $68,000 in early-retirement pay.

The one council member who voted against giving him the benefits, Susan Markin, said granting him retirement sends the wrong message to other town employees.

He filed a lawsuit, too

On top of all this, Seeholzer sued the town alleging it owes him unpaid overtime. In exchange for granting him retirement, Seeholzer has dropped his lawsuit.

Seeholzer claimed he planned but forgot to give the town the $250 he got from the sale of the tires.

What do you think about the outcome of this case? What would your employer do if an employee stole company property worth $250? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

David Hamilton was sentenced to three years in prison by a provincial court in Calgary, Canada for stealing $375,000 from Calgary Transit over the course of seven years.

Hamilton was responsible for sorting and counting fares. He would hide coins in bags and take them home in his knapsack, according to Canada.com.

His knapsack was probably heavier than the average worker’s. The amount he stole works out to at least $200 a day in coins.

Prosecutors say Hamilton used the money to support mistresses, go on vacations, and buy vehicles, homes and appliances.

He’s been ordered to pay full restitution. So far, Calgary Transit has recovered almost $250,000.

The transit agency says it’s added more security procedures to make sure this sort of thing doesn’t happen again.

Stahl pleaded guilty to theft for stealing the sandwiches which were worth $29.45.

Under his sentence from state Superior Court, Stahl will have to pay $100 and he loses his job.

Prosecutor Robert Bianchi said this case shows “the fact that no one is above the law.”

Defense attorney Edward Bilinkas said Stahl “made a mistake and has taken responsibility.”

Example: Who would be able to steal $50,000 worth of bottled water? An employee who drives a forklift.

Michael Fernandes has been arrested and charged with stealing the merchandise from Zephyrhills Water Company in Florida, according to The Tampa Tribune.

Fernandes owned up to the crimes. Over a six-week period, he and another unidentified man swiped five truckloads of bottled water.

Fernandes would load pallets of water onto a tractor-trailer owned by the other man. Fernandes received $500 per truckload for his trouble.

He’s been released on $10,000 bail. 

Years ago we knew someone who had been a toll collector on a state highway.

If he was more than $3 short on any given day, that would cause a problem.

“Most of the time I was $2.90 short,” he said.

That’s nothing compared to this story from Irvington, NJ.

Rodney Dennis  was a civilian employee of the city’s police department.

Part of his job was to empty coins from the city’s parking meters.

Authorities claim Dennis didn’t deposit the coins into a police account as he was supposed to. Instead, he allegedly put them into his own bank account. He’s been charged with stealing the money.

He allegedly deposited more than $30,000 in coins into his own account between Jan. 21 and Dec. 9, 2006.

No one in the city suspected Dennis. It was a bank investigator who became suspicious and alerted police.

Since it was created in 2001, the TSA has fired about 200 employees accused of stealing from air travelers’ luggage.

(Under the Wished We Thought of That category, Tribune Media Services writer Christopher Elliott wonders whether TSA stands for “Taking Something Always.)

The TSA says it has taken steps to discourage workers from helping themselves: background checks on new hires, video cameras in screening areas and rules forbidding employee backpacks or lunchboxes at checkpoints.

The agency says the problem isn’t widespread. It further ensures that TSA aggressively investigates all allegations of misconduct.

But for anyone traveling for business or pleasure this summer, there’s this piece of advice: Don’t pack anything valuable in your checked-in luggage. Better yet: Don’t take valuables on vacation, period.