Favouritism in the Workplace

Any kind of professional environment should be completely objective, where success is measured on performance. However, favouritism in the workplace is only too common - whether it happens intentionally or not.

Professionals must be able to understand and identify possible favouritism issues, as workplace discrimination is a very serious topic. Favouritism in the workplace can also harm the way the company performs, and introduce a negative employee environment.

This guide covers the fundamentals of favouritism in the workplace, how to identify it, and what to do if you feel it exists.

Favouritism in the workplace is when someone in a leadership role shows favour over certain employees for no reason. This could result in some serious workplace issues, like unfair promotions or unequal distribution of responsibilities.

The opposite of workplace favouritism is performance-related assessments. Things like promotions and raises should be based on employee performance. However, when workplace favouritism exists, these things could occur for no justifiable reason.

Preventing favouritism before it happens is something all types of companies should try to achieve. Here are some of the best tactics to do this.

Addressing favouritism in discussions, training, interviews, or review processes is always a good idea. Even if favouritism doesn’t exist in your workplace, bringing up the topic and addressing that it is not tolerated is an effective way to avoid it from taking place in the future.

Communication between employees and managers must be openly available in an organisation. If you’re in an HR or managerial role, make sure that everyone can get in touch with you to voice any possible concerns they might have.

Another great solution is holding regular one-on-one meetings, where team members can openly discuss any issues or ideas they have about their work environment. This can help identify any possible favouritism issues and establish the steps needed to address them.

Anonymous workplace culture surveys give employees a chance to safely voice their concerns and feelings. This is an effective way of getting honest feedback from employees, which can help you identify possible favouritism issues.

Favouritism in the workplace is never intentional, so it's important to consistently review and evaluate your behaviour towards team members. Think about how you treat your different team members, and how you evaluate success amongst the people you work with. This could help you behave more objectively towards everyone you work with.

Although it’s probably not intentional, experiencing favouritism in the workplace is a common occurrence. If you feel you are experiencing it, here are a few steps you can follow.

First, address that it is favouritism. You don’t want to come up with a favouritism accusation if it isn’t valid.

Make sure you understand how managers evaluate success, and what factors go into the decisions they make around things like promotions or bonuses. There could be behind-the-scenes factors you don’t know about - like the employee working overtime or consistently exceeding their targets.

If you think favouritism exists, try to discuss it with colleagues that you trust to get their opinion on it. You might find that other people agree with you, which will make your case against the favouritism issue stronger.

If you have enough reason to believe that favouritism exists in the workplace, then privately discuss the issue with management. Be sure to keep the conversation professional, and avoid venting about the issue. Instead, clearly outline your facts and give management enough time to think about the case.

Make sure the conversation is private and confidential. Remember that the person receiving favouritism probably didn't ask for it, so avoid placing any blame or hard feelings on them.

Identifying and dealing with favouritism in the workplace is an essential part of creating a work environment that is fair and equal. If you’re in a manager role, make sure that all employees understand how big of an issue favouritism is, and take the steps to actively identify it.

Besides the aspect of fairness, introducing a work environment that’s more equal and open can boost employee morale, increase productivity, and result in a more successful business.