Perceptions of Favoritism

EXTRACTION FROM:

Preserving the Integrity of the Federal Merit Systems:

Understanding and Addressing Perceptions of Favoritism

A report to the President and the Congress of the United States

By the U.S. Merit System Protection Board

December 2013

Introduction

The Merit System Principles (MSPs) promote an effective Federal workforce free of Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPPs).  The MSPs serve as the foundation of Federal employment policy and practice, workplace fairness.  The Merit System Principles guide Federal supervisors to base their workforce decisions (e.g., hiring,

promoting, giving awards, and distributing assignments) on objective criteria, such as:

·          assessments of ability or performance, rather than personal feelings and/or relationships, lest they be viewed as practicing personal favoritism.

Favoritism occurs when supervisors or managers base decisions regarding current or prospective employees on personal feelings and/or relationships and not on objective criteria, such as assessments of ability, knowledge, and skills.  “Personal favoritism” occurs when a supervisor or selecting official grants an advantage to one employee or applicant but not another similarly situated employee or applicant based on friendship or other affinity rather than a legitimate merit-based reason.  Examples of favoritism might include:

o    If a selecting official asked human resources management (HRM) staff to find a way to hire a person (such as a friend or political ally) into a position for which the person was unqualified or clearly less qualified than other applicants;

o    If a supervisor granted a career ladder promotion to a favorite employee but denied it to a similar employee who performed at the same level;

o    If a supervisor took disciplinary action against one employee but not a similarly situated employee (who had a similar history and demonstrated identical performance or conduct).

Supervisory Actions Employees Perceive as Evidencing Favoritism
1	Social interactions; spending more time with some employees or demonstrating friendlier behavior to some
2	Work assignments
3	Awards
4	Performance appraisals
5	Advancement/promotion
6	Discipline
7	Training/developmental opportunities
8	Flexible work schedules
9	Networking opportunities

The workplace is a complex social environment.  Supervision is a demanding role that requires a careful balancing of responsibilities to ensure the effective and efficient management of employees while accomplishing the organization’s mission.  Employees may also suspect favoritism when they are not selected for promotions within their organizations, particularly if they do not receive feedback when they were not selected.  Honest feedback can serve two vital purposes:

1)     to help employees improve their readiness for future opportunities and

2)     to provide transparency to decrease perceptions of favoritism.

Likely causes of perceived favoritism include:

1)     Intentional favoritism, where the supervisor intends to make decisions based on personal connections;

2)     Unintentional favoritism, where the supervisor’s decisions have been influenced by interpersonal relationships without the supervisor’s conscious awareness or a lack of knowledge or tools to help the supervisor make merit-based decisions; and

3)     A misperception by employees, such as when professional relationships exist that do not conflict with the merit systems, or when a mentor or supervisor provides more opportunities to those who demonstrate the ability and motivation to take on new roles.

Supervisors should be aware that employees pay attention to the entire range of actions that supervisors take during the day, from formal decisions to informal interactions.

Perceptions of workplace favoritism can have harmful consequences for employees and the organization:

o    Decreased employee satisfaction and engagement;

o    Decreased capability to recruit and retain highly qualified employees;

o    Increased conflict between employees and between employees and management; and

o    Decreased agency performance.

Recommendations

Supervisors need to hold themselves accountable or making the best possible decisions through the following strategies:

STRATEGIES
Agency leaders should	·          Communicate strong support of the MSPs and avoidance of the PPPs ·          Select supervisors based on their ability and willingness to manage employees fairly and effectively ·          Provide supervisors with the necessary training so they understand the practical examples of actions that might be perceived as favoritism ·          Hold supervisors accountable for violating the prohibited personnel practices ·          Provide employees with information regarding the merit system principles and prohibited personnel ·          practices and their relevance to decisions made within the organization
Supervisors should	·          Honor the spirit and intent of the merit system principles ·          strive to avoid any actions that might cause employees to suspect a violation of a prohibited personnel practice ·          Make appropriate use of management flexibilities ·          seek the advice of HRM experts when needed ·          Make decisions (e.g., regarding selections for promotions, career-enhancing work assignments, training opportunities, and awards) that are objective and based on work-related criteria ·          Assess the needs of the work group in terms of competencies and actively strive to fill these gaps through selection and/or training ·          exercise transparency, whenever possible, such as by providing feed-back to employees ·          Treat all employees with respect ·          Facilitate two-way discussions with all employees ·          Maintain awareness of employees’ abilities, goals and interests and distribute opportunities in a manner that considers both employee and organizational needs ·          Exercise supervisory duties with care ·          Talk with all employees, and not just the ones with whom the supervisor has a natural affinity, whether due to similarities in terms of interests, personality, or other factors ·          Understand that employees may view matters differently although supervisors may believe that they are allocating opportunities based on talent, aptitude and interest
Human resources management staff should	·          Appropriately advise supervisors to support the merit system principles and avoid prohibited personnel practices ·          Take appropriate action when they witness violations of the merit system principles and prohibited personnel practices
Employees should	·          Seek honest feedback ·          strive to improve in preparation for future opportunities ·          Understand that there may be alternative explanations for decisions that may appear to involve personal favouritism ·          Consider options (e.g., discussing with the supervisor how to achieve a more favorable outcome in the future, seeking employment elsewhere or filing a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel) when they suspect personal favoritism is occurring to determine what would be the best course of action ·          ensure that they assess all employees’ strengths and areas for development relative to their unique job requirements and to the current and future needs of the agency