HR59 Employment of Relatives
POLICY'S INITIAL DATE: July 1, 1947
THIS VERSION EFFECTIVE: July 31, 2025
Contents
PURPOSE:
The University aims to provide equitable employment opportunities for all individuals, including those related to one another, and understands that such relationships affect the handling of personnel actions. Therefore, this policy outlines the circumstances under which relatives may be employed.
DEFINITION OF A RELATIVE:
For the purposes of this policy, a relative is any individual related by blood, marriage, or domestic partnership. A relative also includes step-relations, in-laws, and individuals in long-term or cohabiting relations where there is a significant personal bond that could be comparable to a familial or martial relationships.
RELATIVES IN THE WORKPLACE:
An employee should not supervise a relative nor have any role in an employment decision that involves a direct benefit or detriment to a relative, including but not limited to, rate of pay, promotion or demotion, granting of tenure, or where the handling of confidential information could create difficult work situations.
There may be times due to unique circumstances, such as specialized educational background or experience, that results in a relative being in a supervising capacity or having a role in an employment decision over another. In such circumstances, satisfactory arrangements must be outlined and approved in advance, either by the Vice President for Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer, for staff positions, or the Executive Vice President and Provost, for academic positions. Arrangements must restrict (1) any supervising relative from making decisions such as those described above that will directly affect a relative, and (2) access to confidential information.
CROSS REFERENCES:
AD102 - Consensual Relationships