Sure, they need to be honest about it and lying about it is wrong. I would definitely tell one of my direct reports not to do it again. If they persisted I’d put them on a PIP and if they failed to correct I’d fire them. I have let people go for this.

The issue that I have here is that it sounds like the company is set up for failure. Rigidly monitoring your employees is a great way to burn them out and kills loyalty. If you want people to work hard, offering a little trust goes a long way.

It’s always worth asking what you could have done better as a leader and starting with an assumption that they’re not just criminals.