<p>I work in the government as a non-union non-political manager. We are in the process of promoting a significant number of union workers to a higher title. My manager has her niece on the list of those eligible for promotion. My manager’s sister currently holds the title for the position we are promoting to but was not eligible for the civil service test so at this point can not keep the job.
My manager is placing conditions on those interviewing that have never been placed on candidates before- length of time they are going to be required to stay at their new location before they can request a reassignment. This appears to violate the union contract.
The conditon may be valid condition however I have significant concerns-we never had this condition before so since my boss has two relatives impacted there appears to be an inherent conflict of interest and secondly the fact that this policy violates the contract.
I had a long drawn out “challenge” with her about the issue and have successfully created a situation where she is annoyed with me.
Now I can go to the mat on this and demand she recuse herself or leave it to the union people to challenge her sometime down the road when someone asks to be reassigned and they get denied.
My concern with waiting is that the workplace is a small world and when employees are impacted by favortism and rules clearly meant to disuade them from taking a job because someone else is connected it impacts performance. On the other hand I have limited staff in this fight that will be impacted directly.
So should I do what I feel is the right thing to do and get nit picked to death for the foreseeable future or let others fight this battle?</p>
<p>If it were me, I wouldn’t fight this. I know it’s unfair and it may lead to problems down the road, but frankly, I think this is fairly common- or situations like it- in government hiring. Positions are sometimes even written to favor a particular candidate whom the hiring manager wants. This is done in the private sector, as well.
If it actually violates the union contract, it’s possible that it will be challenged down the road, as you mentioned. It’s one of those “pick your battles” issues, and I don’t think it’s worth the “win.” jmo</p>
<p>If it violates the contract, shouldn’t the shop steward be involved?</p>
<p>Where are the union stewards? They are the ones who should be making sure it’s a level playing field for all the applicants.</p>
<p>I would see if there is someone in the union in a position to fight this on behalf of all the applicants. The time to deal with it is now - because indeed the condition could dissuade someone from taking the position. Time-in-position can be a legitimate concern, but it can also have negative impact for the employer if the person who is the perfect fit for another position isn’t eligible due to such a condition.</p>