Hire a relative and risk the slammer

In my hometown in Massachusetts, two brothers operated a fruit-and-vegetable store.  In those days the main drag through downtown included only two chain stores — Rexall and Woolworth’s. You could buy a canary at Woolworth’s.

The two brothers’ popular store would get busy in the afternoons, with lots of orders barked by them to other employees to go out back and get more tomatoes or whatever. But the brothers shared one peculiar characteristic: They had become bitter enemies and refused to speak to each other.

So much for the benefits of hiring relatives.

As our Meredith Somers reports, nepotism is on the mind of overseers at the Merit Systems Protection Board. Using slightly old data from 2010, MSPB reminds everyone that hiring or promoting relatives, an illegal practice, occurs regularly in federal agencies. Rates vary, but everyone does it.

MSPB is bringing this up now because of the impending presidential transition, and it wants to warn potential appointees — even the next president.

Presidential nepotism seems like a distinct possibility. I’ve read talk that Donald Trump would consider one of his sons or maybe his wife for an administration post. Hillary Clinton says she’d consider Bill for economic policy. Bill had his wife do health care reform the last time and it didn’t work out so well. President Kennedy appointed his brother Bobby as attorney general, an earlier precedent. Jimmy Carter was wise enough to keep his brother Billy out of his administration. Even so Billy caused a minor scandal concerning Libya. If people are likely to call your people boobs, buffoons or whackos, you’d best not try and hire them.

Such highly conspicuous appointments, many requiring Senate affirmation, concern MSPB less than the hanky panky that can occur by the appointees themselves and by career senior executives.

Chat with Jonathan Alboum, USDA CIO, July 26 at 2 p.m. Sign up here.

Like pregnancy, nepotism is what MSPB calls a binary state — either the person you hire or supervise is related or isn’t. Nepotism has a bi-directional quality. The recipient of a hiring, promotion or raise is also out of luck if it comes to light.

You can marry into nepotistic state, too, by the way.

I’ve always wondered why in the world would someone even want to hire or work with a relative. It’s such a rich opportunity to have your own authority questioned, open yourself to embarrassment, or ensure the eventuality of a family feud. Even in commercial sole proprietorships, like the aforementioned fruit-and-vegetable store, nepotism can produce misery. How much worse it can be in public service.

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