If it’s the summer it must be time for Peninsula Ireland to publish research and get unquestioning news coverage. For previous episodes of ‘dodgy research getting press coverage syndrome’ please see here here and here .

For those of you unaware – the way this works is – Peninsula do research on employment related topic, get a headline put it on a press release and papers publish it verbatim. Peninsula get press coverage of their company and everyone thinks that the majority of employees take sick leave, surf too much at work and are otherwise terrible.

Today’s dramatic research finding (no info on their website about it) is regarding staff stealing from employers and Business World and other publications have reproduced the press release. Therefore director Alan Price will appear unchallenged throughout broadcast media without any examination of the methods involved in research, sample size and error margins. He’s just been on the News at One on RTE Radio 1 in a classic example of this. 68% of employees have admitted to stealing from employers ergo two thirds of all employees steal.

Trade Unions and others please take note and use some of your resources to kick this rubbish where it should remain.