Favouritism in the workplace is the fear of many employees. And there is no doubt that bad management allows favouritism to flourish.
All employees are entitled to, and expect to be, treated equally. Favouritism can cause employees to feel treated unfairly, and the subject of discrimination.
While it is not best practice, favouritism is not necessarily illegal. There is nothing unlawful about a manager favouring an employee or a group of employees.
Unless, of course, that favouritism is rooted in discrimination or goes against specific laws.
What Is Favouritism in The Workplace?
Favouritism is what it says on the tin – favouring someone or some group in the workplace for reasons outside of their job performance.
A well-known type of favouritism is nepotism. Nepotism means to show favour to family members or friends, and for obvious reasons is commonly found in family-run businesses.
Many successful businessmen’s children take up their parent’s roles in the family business. Sir James Fletcher, Harry Hart and the Whittaker family are examples of this.
Another example of favouritism is when an employee or group of employees is treated differently due to personal characteristics. Treating employees based on personal characteristics can be seen as discrimination.
Favouritism As A Form Of Discrimination
The Employment Relations Act and the Human Rights Act provide all employees in New Zealand protection from discrimination. Personal characteristics protected from discrimination are:
age
race, colour, national or ethnic origin and beliefs or immigrant status
religion or political opinion
sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity
marital status
pregnancy or breastfeeding
family or carer responsibilities or status
physical or mental disability
employment status
membership or involvement in a union
or if they’re being affected by domestic violence
Is Favouritism in The Workplace Illegal?
Favouritism in the workplace isn’t outrightly illegal. However, if there is discriminatory favouritism then it can be unlawful.
Under the Employment Relations Act and the Human Rights Act, all employees in New Zealand are protected from being discriminated against due to personal characteristics. Some of these characteristics include race, religion, and sex, among others.
Managing Favouritism In the Workplace
Here are a few ways to manage favouritism, including how to prevent it. A workplace rife with favouritism fosters low morale, a bad culture and overlooking potential and good performers.
1 - Nurture A Professional Environment
Protect your workplace from potential favouritism by nurturing a professional environment. Favouritism is a fundamentally unprofessional phenomenon. Foster a serious work focus is the first step in warding off favouritism.
2 - Provide A Policy
Communicating to your employees and managers (if applicable) your expectations is another great way to protect from favouritism. A policy is the best way to provide this information. Providing a copy to all employees is the clearest and firmest way of communicating your expectations. It is also signals how seriously you take the issue.
3 - Offer Training
What is and isn’t discrimination is not always intuitive. To prevent favouritism due to discrimination, consider offering training for your staff. During this training session, you can also educate employees of the drawbacks of favouritism.
4 - Nip It in The Bud
If you see any signs of favouritism sprouting, nip them in the bed. Addressing the problem directly can be difficult, but it can stop any further damage caused by favouritism. It is strongly suggested to investigate and address favouritism if you believe it may be discriminatory.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does nepotism affect the workplace?
Nepotism can negatively affect the workplace in several ways. Primarily it sets a bad cultural precedent. Employees are either successful because they’re either the family or friends of the manager, or they’re not.
Nepotism also reduces morale in the office, as employees not part of the in-group will feel less valued. If an employee has received their role due to nepotism, it may foster feelings that the employee didn’t truly “earn” their position.
Is nepotism in the workplace illegal?
Nepotism is not illegal in the workplace. In fact, many businesses are family-run businesses, and it is a business owner’s right to run their business in the best way they see fit. Depending on the industry, employees may have a duty to disclose family connections, for example to meet regulatory requirements such as anti-bribery and corruption laws.
Is preferential treatment in the workplace illegal?
Preferential treatment overall is not illegal. However, it is illegal if the preferential treatment is discriminatory. That is, a worker is treated differently due to a personal characteristic, such as their race, sexual orientation or religion.
Preferential treatment such as nepotism or favouritism is also not illegal.
How do you address an unfair treatment at work?
Investigate the matter and interview staff about it
Decide and note what, if any, behaviour or actions were unfair
Discuss the issue with the unfairly treated employee(s) and perpetrator(s) of the treatment
Attempt a mediation between the two parties, if appropriate (e.g. mediation wouldn’t be appropriate for a
sexual harassment claim)
Decide on disciplinary measures, if necessary, against the perpetrator
Discuss the general issue with the rest of the staff, without breaching confidentiality
Re-distribute policy & procedures to remind staff
How should employers treat employees?
Treat all employees equally
Treat all employees respectfully
Treat all employees fairly
Treat all employees without discriminating against them
Reward employees only on the basis of the quality of their work
Be vigilant about any emerging favouritism in the workplace
How Can Favouritism Be Prevented In The Workplace?
Cultivate a professional environment. Favouritism is a very unprofessional behaviour. Set up the workplace to reward professionalism and strong performers.
Produce a policy document and distribute it to staff. A policy document is the best bet to letting staff know of your expectations. A policy document has the added benefit of telling your staff that you’re serious about the issue.
Offer training to staff. Favouritism training can educate staff about the dangers of favouritism – poor morale, overlooking of potential and a bad culture. Favouritism training can also cover the important topic of discrimination, bullying and harassment to help prevent it occuring.
Is Favouritism A Form Of Harassment?
Whether or not favouritism is a form of harassment is a case-by-case basis. In some cases, while it is unwelcome, favouritism is not harassment.
In other cases, favouritism can be considered harassment if its discriminatory or vindictive in nature. For example, putting the spotlight on an employee for the wrong reasons can be considered harassing or bullying the employee.
Is It Illegal to Treat Employees Differently?
It is not outrightly illegal to treat employees differently. For example, it is fine for a strongly performing employee to be offered a promotion over other employees.
However, it is illegal to treat employees differently if it is discriminatory. Discrimination means treating someone differently based on a personal characteristic, e.g. their race, religion or sexual orientation.
Is Favouritism in The Workplace Illegal?
Favouritism in the workplace isn’t outrightly illegal. However, if there is discriminatory favouritism then it can be unlawful.
Under the Employment Relations Act and the Human Rights Act, all employees in New Zealand are protected from being discriminated against due to personal characteristics. Some of these characteristics include race, religion, and sex, among others.
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