The following situations suggest either a strength or a weakness in internal control:

1. At Frederico's, Amanda and Long work alternate lunch hours. Normally Amanda works the cash register at the checkout counter, but during her lunch hour Long takes her place. They both use the same cash drawer and count cash together at the end of the day.

2. Sandeep is a very hard-working employee at Stan's Hardware. Sandeep does such a good job that he is responsible for most of the company's office and accounting tasks. The only thing the owner has to do is sign cheques.

3. At Half Pipe Skate, they are very concerned about running an efficient, low-cost business. Consequently, the manager has assigned the same individual to do the purchasing and prepare the receiving reports when the merchandise is delivered.

4. At Traction Tires, most of the tires are stored in a fenced outdoor storage area. One of the employees noticed a place where the fence needed to be repaired and reported this to the manager. The fence was fixed before the close of business that night.

5. The internal auditors at Humber Manufacturing regularly report their findings to senior management, who get the accounting department to investigate and resolve any problems.

6. All employees at Vincent Travel take vacation every year. During that time, with the exception of the controller's position, the employees' duties are assigned to another individual while they are on vacation.

Instructions

(a) State whether each situation above is a strength or a weakness in internal control.

(b) For each weakness, suggest an improvement?