Blog
Making the Decision to Hire Family ... or Not!
By guest blogger: Shawndria McCoy, Esq., a North Carolina attorney
Long before I sat for the bar exam, I made a promise not to employ family in my Firm. Family dynamics and interaction have significantly changed from how it used to be many years ago. Seemingly, people have grown to become more sensitive to even the most miniscule things, which tends to tear friendships and relationships apart. I have witnessed family relationships becoming strained or even non-existent when one family member goes into business with another family member or becomes an employee to one. Many issues arise that can create problems long-term. Is it worth losing that family relationship over? I opine, it is not. Family can create stress that is unnecessary especially when your focus should be on your job and not why he or she is not speaking with you.
The biggest stumbling block that interrupts the flow and happiness of family is money. When you add family to your payroll it seems they cannot be satisfied. Particularly as an attorney, there is a preconceived notion that all attorneys make lots of money. Family, whether they have access to the business books or not, seem to share in this notion and therefore money becomes an issue when they feel they should be paid more. Family can act as if they have a special entitlement to more money and resources beyond what the regular employee is entitled to. That is just not the case.
Favoritism can cause issues in the workplace among family members. One employee may feel slighted or less than because their employer is showing favoritism to their co-worker who is the boss’s daughter or brother. The employer may allow the family member employee to get away with things that others cannot such as having more sick time or time away from the office, having longer lunch breaks, and being able to say and do things that are less than professional. Also, family may be allowed to make more mistakes whereas the other employees would be immediately fired had they committed that mistake.
It is extremely bad business to make employees feel like they are not treated equal as their co-workers, including receiving equal pay when warranted.
Confidentiality becomes an issue when you hire family members. Not all family members know how to keep secrets, but instead seem to want to expose every piece of information they can find out. That is bad business in a number of ways. Regardless who you hire, you want to always keep your business clear of ethical or confidentiality breaches. I have heard stories where family member employees have breached confidentiality issues by exposing the firm to computer hacking and the family member refusing to take responsibility. This ultimately resulted in the person being fired by their family member employer. This type of situation does not make for great conversation or interaction at the family reunion.
On the other hand, there are also cases where employers have hired family members and the working and personal relationship have worked out well. There are some who boast that their business has grown because their family member took great care in support of them and wanted to see them grow and become successful. Some family members can be about their professional business.
Another benefit to hiring a family member is that they already know you and know your work style, your expectations, what makes you happy, and what disappoints you. A regular employee unrelated to you may not know these things and the learning curve for them may be too great to handle if you are a difficult or very picky person. Hiring someone who knows you may prove to be beneficial long-term and may save you time training the next person how to relate to you.
Sometimes, depending on who the person is, hiring a family member can be a financial gain for you and your family. For example, an attorney who hires his wife to handle the bookkeeping is able to keep the money within the household. The business may cover certain expenses that the spouse would otherwise have to pay out of pocket, such as travel expenses and health insurance benefits. Hiring a family member may give you extra benefits you would not otherwise have such as allowing the family member to work from home so they can also care for children, saving money on child care expenses.
It is not my intention to convey that hiring a family member is not a good idea or to ward against it. If you are considering doing so, just take great care and consider all possibilities. You cannot make a frivolous and fast decision, but have a well thought out plan just in case the relationship becomes sour and you are forced to fire that person. Do not allow my personal conviction to persuade you either way. As for me and my house, I’ll continue to keep my working relationships separate from my personal.