When I first heard the term “pink-collar crime” I thought of a poodle wearing a frilly pink collar.

Everyone knows the saying White Collar Criminal (think Bernie Madoff and Martha Stewart), but when I say Pink Collar Criminal they get a blank look. Most people don’t realize it but they probably are neighbors, co-workers, friends or acquaintances with either a Pink Collar Criminal or someone who has been embezzled by a Pink Collar Criminal.

A Pink Collar Criminal can be a PTA mom, your dentist’s office manager, and yes even someone’s grandma. The statistics on Pink Collar Criminals are alarming. According to the FBI, male embezzlers have increased only 4% since 1990 while Pink Collar Criminals have increased over 40% during that time period.

The term pink-collar crime was coined by Kathleen Daly during the 1980s to describe embezzlement type crimes that typically were committed by females based on limited opportunity.

In this context, women were more likely to have committed low level crimes such as check kiting and book-keeping fraud from positions of less power compared to men who had engaged in acts of white-collar crime.

Do you think it is because women perpetrate so many of these crimes they are given the moniker of “pink collar”? I think it is just another way to differentiate what is becoming a major type of theft in this country. Do you think mandatory stop theft classes in public schools would help alleviate this growing trend? I eagerly await your response.