7 Questions to Diagnose Employee Favoritism - Are You Playing Favorites?

One of the least admitted problems in the workplace is employee favoritism. Employers, higher management and middle management are all susceptible to playing favorites. Many will admit to going to one group of people or another because they are the workers that get the job done right the first time, but is that a viable defense for employee favoritism? Here are 7 questions to ask yourself to diagnose a problem with employee favoritism.

Do you go to one person or group of people to "get the job done"? While one group of employees may get the job done faster or even better than another, going to the same person or group over and over again is employee favoritism. Seeking out these employees blindly could mean you are not spending enough time educating and training other employees.

Do you treat every employee request in the same way? There will be personal feelings in the workplace, especially for managers, but treating worker request differently based on these personal feelings is not acceptable. There needs to be a rule and that rule needs to be followed for all employees.

Do you overlook certain infractions for certain employees? Breaking the rules should not be overlooked for a specific employee or group of employees just because they are on the "favorite" list. Often, the workers that are allowed to break the rules from time to time are the ones that breed gossip and trouble within the worker population.

Do you connect with employees on social media websites? Social media websites are not for employee / employer communication. When a manager connects to workers on a personal level, there is room for interpretation even if that interpretation is biased.

Do you talk with only a few employees on a daily basis? Managers need to take time to talk with all employees on a one-to-one basis. Stopping and conversing with the same people every day is something others will notice and soon rumors will start about employee favoritism.

Do you know the same amount of information about all employees? There is a fine line between support and personal conversation. Employers and managers will likely know some bits of information that are more personal about employees going through tough times. This does not mean the manager should not know something about everyone. Walk your business and take note of how many people are working in your business that you know nothing about.

Have you been accused of favoritism before? Employees see what is going on with naked eyes. If you have been accused of employee favoritism, there is a good chance you are playing favorites in the workplace.