Employees are generally unsatisfied and unproductive when they see one employee receiving undeserved favouritism.
If you're into the Hollywood scene, you will recall the criticism that Jaden Smith’s role received in the movie After Earth released in 2013. Allegations of nepotism plagued it's release, with critics saying that Jaden was “entirely lacking in the big-screen charisma that made his father [Will Smith] one of Hollywood’s major stars”. Closer to home, allegations of nepotism are commonplace, especially when it comes to government officials and various big corporates.
While in these cases nepotism may fall by the wayside, when it enters the workplace it is generally perceived as a bad thing and can have a disastrous impact on team dynamics, ultimately even effecting the bottom line.
So what is nepotism?
Nepotism relates to activities associated to favouritism; it can often be identified in cases where an individual hires a family relative. Nepotism also presents itself in cases where someone in a position of power hires and promotes an individual undeserving of a position. As an example, a supervisor constantly offers the same employee the best projects, even if that employee performs below par.
As employees generally regard nepotism as an unfair practice in the workplace, they may retaliate, which can result in the following consequences:
Decreased employee morale: which can mean a loss of profits for a company as employees focus less on meeting their targets and more on complaining.
Resentment: resulting from a lack of morale, an employee will often show resentment towards their manager for unfairly favouring another employee, as well as the employee who is being favoured.
Employee turnover: when issues of nepotism are not resolved, they may reach a point where employees leave the company, which could see some of the best guys cleaning out their desks.
Overlooking talent: when one employee always receives undeserved rewards, employees with real talent and skills can be easily missed.
Stunted growth: a lack in morale coupled with growing resentment and overlooked talent can hurt the overall company by impeding its growth.
Legal battles: as the employee who feels they are unfairly discriminated against takes legal action.
Read: Dealing with negativity in the workplace
These often damaging consequences can be avoided when nepotism is dealt with. Even if nepotism is not directly affecting you, raising your voice will work to the long term benefit of your employees and the company as a whole.
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Nepotism is often hard to avoid, especially in times where the relative is certainly most qualified for the job. However, the onus remains with you to ensure that if there are family members working in the same business area, everyone is given the same treatment.
