Favoritism at Work: It’s Illegal and Morally Wrong

labor favoritism

We have all been victims of favoritism at work. Favoritism means exactly what it sounds like. Sometimes we are not aware when work favoritism happens to us. Have you lost a promotion due to favoritism?

There is a famous phrase that pervades the entire workplace and in our daily lives. The sentence is “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”

What happened to the merit promotion?

When I was young, I refused to believe that favoritism could happen in the workplace. I didn’t know he was naive. I think most people would say it was foolish to wait any longer.

I quickly learned that favoritism is rampant in some work environments and easily disguised.

Definition of favoritism:

Favoritism = the demonstration of a special favor.

Words related to favoritism

Cronyism and nepotism are more specialized terms.

How is favoritism related to these terms?

While cronyism and nepotism are closely related to favoritism, they describe the type of favoritism.

cronyism = refers to showing favoritism to friends or acquaintances.

I know you’ve heard of the phrase Good Ol’ Boys. The term cronyism derives from this behavior. It has continued for centuries.

A good example of this behavior is when politicians return favors to those who helped them get elected. The politician offers a position to one of his friends or relaxes the laws to help his colleagues.

Do you think that cronyism is ethical?

Would you still support a politician if convicted of cronyism?

Do you think cronyism is the way things are done in Washington DC?

nepotism = refers to favoritism towards family members. The term comes from the Latin word nepos which means nephew.

I almost expect to lose a job with a relative. It may not be fair, but employers are smart enough not to show that they hired a person out of nepotism.

On the other hand, I would denounce labor favoritism if it was obvious. He would hate working for the boss’s son or close relative. I could never really trust him.

Most of the time you will be the one to be reassigned to another job if a problem arises.

Have you ever worked for a boss’s son?

If a relative were hired in your place, would you make noise or remain a loyal employee?

Can you name another setting where favoritism occurs?

How can we fight favoritism?

Do you think there are good reasons to show favoritism?

If you were the benefactor of favoritism, how would you feel morally?

Have you ever reported favoritism?

The bottom line is that it doesn’t matter what level of favoritism; if it is based on race, gender, religion, it is illegal. The EEOC has laws that protect us against favoritism in the workplace.

If you believe you are a victim of favoritism in the workplace, you should file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The EEOC is responsible for all discrimination in the workplace. Be sure to check with your job to see if they have a local representative.

The representative can guide you through the complaint process or help you resolve the problem.

Please note that no one can stop you from filing a complaint with the EEOC. If you are not encouraged to file a lawsuit, you may have another lawsuit.

If you don’t feel comfortable talking to a co-worker, you can contact an EEOC counselor.

Your employer has violated your rights if it retaliates against you for applying.

Do we expect favoritism at work?

I hope this article helps someone and informs you that you have rights even at work.