Most employees believe that hiring, promotions, raises, and other workplace rewards should be based on merit and performance. In some workplaces, however, employers engaged in favoritism (rewarding employees who they like) or nepotism (rewarding family members) rather than being fair and objective.
These practices can poison a workplace, affecting employee morale, performance, and productivity. But are they illegal?
Favoritism as Discrimination or Harassment
If favoritism is based on an employee's protected trait, that might constitute discrimination. For example, a manager might favor employees who like a local sports team or share other interests. However, if a manager favors employees based on their race, sex, religion, or other protected characteristic, that would be illegal discrimination. Federal and state laws prohibit employers from making job decisions based on these traits, and a manager who treats some employees better or worse on this basis is breaking the law.
If a manager favors employees who are willing to put up with his sexual advances, that would also be illegal. It's a form of sexual harassment for a manager to make acquiescing to sexual advances or conduct a condition of receiving job benefits. In this situation, the employees who refused to go along might have a harassment claim.
Favoritism as Breach of Contract
Some forms of favoritism might violate company policies or contracts. For example, if the employee handbook sets out a procedure for determining who gets internal promotions, a manager who disregards that procedure in order to promote his cronies has violated company policy. Similarly, if an employee has a contract that includes sets out the employee's pay, a manager can't cut the employee's pay because he doesn't like the employee; that would be breach of contract.
For more information on legal claims that might arise out of favoritism, see Can I Sue for Employee Favoritism?
From the author: California Employment Discrimination Laws
