2.20aa Employment of Relatives - Standard

Employment of Relatives

Purpose

Establish a process to address, document and communicate exceptions and alternate established restrictions allowed under 2.20a Employment of Relatives – Regulation to ensure employees of the City do not violate current State and City laws, rules and regulations regarding employment of relatives.

Scope

This SOP applies to all employees of the City of Boise and all hiring and employment decisions affecting all job classifications, including regular, temporary, part-time and seasonal positions.

Definitions

• Direct supervisor/manager/subordinate relationship: A relationship where a supervisor is the first level of supervision for an employee and has direct authority and responsibility to manage day-to-day work activities, e.g., work assignments, feedback, performance evaluations, guidance, etc.
• Unresolvable conflict of interest: An actual, or perceived, conflict of interest whose detrimental impact on the City cannot be sufficiently resolved by utilizing alternate reporting structures, process changes, decision making restrictions, etc.
• Exceptions memo: A memorandum documenting approved exception to 2.20a Employment of Relatives Regulation by establishing expectations and restrictions necessary to resolving prohibited family relationship conflicts.
• Alternate established restrictions: Changes in reporting structure or decision-making protocol designed to reduce or resolve actual, or perceived, conflict of interest situations which would otherwise have a detrimental impact on the City.

Responsibilities

• HR Business Partner (HRBP)
  • Fulfill the role of HR Director as outlined in City Regulation 2.20a if so designated.
  • Guide employees through the exception determination process.
  • Determine if prohibited relationship or unresolvable conflict of interest exist.
  • Determine, develop and document alternate established restrictions.

Rules or Requirements

• All potential prohibited situations must be reported to the HR.
• All family relationships must be reviewed, resolved and documented before final decision to appoint, hire, promote, etc.

Procedures

• Reporting:
  • Employees must immediately notify HR of any family or domestic partner relationship that may influence employment decisions.
  • Supervisors must immediately report any such relationship to HR.
• Evaluation:
  • HR will assess whether the relationship creates a prohibited employment relationship, defined as:
    • A direct supervisory relationship; or
    • An unresolvable conflict of interest.
• Permissible Employment:
  • Employment may proceed if HR determines:
    • The current employee had no role in the hiring process;
    • The candidate is qualified; and
    • The current employee cannot influence employment terms or decisions, with or without alternate established restrictions.
• Mitigation through alternate established restrictions:
  • HR will:
    • Determine if alternate established restrictions are substantial enough to resolve conflict of interest concerns and sufficient to ensure a current employee cannot affect or influence employment terms and conditions of employment of family members.
    • Document any approved exception to this regulation and any alternate established restrictions via memorandum(s) issued to all parties (see exhibits 1 & 2)
• Unresolvable conflicts:
  • HR will attempt to find a suitable transfer for one of the impacted employees. Employees must be qualified for any transfer. If no transfer is available HR will work with impacted employees to determine who will remain with the City.
• Documentation and Record Keeping:
  • HR will maintain all records of:
    • Reported relationships.
    • Approved exceptions to this regulation
    • Alternate established restrictions

Special Situations

• Mayor or Council Member Relatives:
  • Relatives of the Mayor or City Council members may not be appointed to paid positions unless HR determines an exception is warranted in situations where the employee was hired before the election of a relative.
  • Employees are required to disclose any potential situation to HR as soon as they become aware of a potential prohibited relationship under this section.
  • HR will document any approved exception.

Safety and Compliance

Adherence to this SOP is required to ensure compliance with City Regulation 2.20a – Employment of Relatives. Non-compliance and/or undocumented deviations from this SOP may result in repercussions for the department or individual involved.

Quality Control and SLAs (Service Level Agreements)

HR may investigate and initiate necessary corrective action for any unreported prohibited relationships to ensure compliance with regulation HR-R-0060-01.

Related Information

• Employment of Relatives Regulation

Approval and Revision History