Public security

At Large: No toilet paper? That reminds me of the compliance department . . .

In Newport, Oregon, police are asking citizens to stop calling 9-1-1 to report that they’ve run out of toilet paper. The UK’s sewage system is in danger of clogging from wet wipes and other improvised loo roll substitutes. In Paris, PQ panic has set in, as papier cul (excuse my French) has disappeared from stores everywhere.

What’s going on? And what are the lessons for compliance professionals?

1. Fear produces irrationality. There’s enough toilet paper for everyone. We know that because every day for years we’ve all had enough. But when uncertainty about Covid-19 set in, people started imagining things. Like a world without toilet paper. In our work, then, what happens if we think the future is shaky? What if we fear losing our jobs, or being demoted, or having our pay cut? Might that fear motivate us to pay a bribe? Even if a bribe may not work, is always illegal, and is likely to end in disaster for us personally, might we pay a bribe anyway? Oh ya...