Image Source Dall-e
Let me start off with defining what I believe nepotism to be. It may mean different things to different people so I figure it is better to set a baseline if I'm going to talk about it.
Nepotism is favoritism shown to relatives, especially by giving them jobs, positions, contracts, or other advantages.
In general nepotism has gotten a bad connotation in the world today. I have heard friends in the Philippines talk about the lack of jobs for qualified people because those people who know people get the jobs. It is especially galling when the person who gets the job isn't qualified. In Hollywood we hear the word "Nepobaby" thrown about. Generally it means that your parents are stars and they use their influence to help their children become stars.
As an example. Have you ever heard of "Francis Ford Coppola"? He is a very famous movie director. Have you ever heard of Nicolas Kim Coppola? His nephew. Most likely not. The main reason is that he changed his name so that when he worked in movies he wouldn't be seen as getting the parts because of his famous uncle. You would probably know him better as "Nicolas Cage" a prolific and well respected actor.
Would Nicolas Cage have made it as an actor if he didn't get a little help from his uncle? Maybe and maybe not. Has he proven himself to be an excellent actor regardless of his family ties. There are many many other examples where actors have proven themselves to be far more than their family connections.
Nepotism has been very common in historic times. If your father was a baker then the son would likely be taught to carry on the business. It was similar for farmers, merchants, blacksmiths, tailors and many many types of jobs. Skills were passed from father to son and those skills meant that the town would keep valuable trades in an era before the mobility that is common today.
The passing of skills through the family line was important in an age before people having easy access to University and Colleges. Before trade schools became commonplace and before there were government standards on almost everything.
Am I oversimplifying? Of course. Not every son of a blacksmith was cut out to follow in his fathers footsteps. I'm only making a point that a parents training could open doors into a profession that would be much harder than one without a similar connection.
In a case a lot closer to home I have worked in my current job for almost 15 years. The owner of the Pharmacy has hired his children, my coworkers children, and even my youngest son. He commonly hires friends and family of staff members. His reasoning is simple: I want people who are vetted by people I trust. My boss knows I'm trustworthy and if I say my son is well suited for the job he believes me. He knows his daughters. He knows their suitability for the job (or lack of it) and hires them accordingly.
At my workplace? Absolutely it helps to be related to the boss or his workers. However, the favoritism ends there. I've also seen family members get released if they can't do the work or they are subpar in their performance.
Most jobs require that their staff be trusted. If you can't trust your staff that is a very bad place to be. My boss hires those who are familiar or related because there is a baseline of trust when they are hired. In that regard I never once thought of recommending my older son for a job where I work. I knew that while he was a great kid he would be a bad fit for my workplace. In the same way I did not recommend my younger son for a job where I work. At least not when he was younger. When he was older, more mature, and had proven himself to me? Absolutely I recommended him and yes, he got a job and yes he proved himself a valuable member of the team.
I like to think of family recommendations as very strong letters of referenceEveryone applying for a job needs good references and the best references are from those people the boss already knows and trusts the judgement of.
But there is also a problem.
Sometimes people are hired because the job is highly desirable with little work and big pay. Some really nice government jobs. Some high paid positions in a company. There are just some jobs where the pay and desirability makes it something that anyone would love to get it. When those jobs go to people because of who they know or are related to? It makes those people who wish they could get the job jealous--and rightly so.
Sometimes those desirable jobs need highly skilled, highly responsible, highly intelligent or otherwise exceptional individuals. Sometimes people use their family influence or connections to put someone unqualified into the position. That is what gives nepotism its bad reputation.
How many times do we see senior government officials get a position because of family position, family influence, or bribes. To know that incompetent or suboptimal people are hired into lucrative jobs because of influence no-one else has? To know that they are making way more money and doing a poor job? To know that the average taxpayer is paying top dollar for a defective employee. Of course that makes the better candidates angry and discouraged. Rightly so!
But...
Anyone who says that it is hasn't been living in it very long or is sorely mistaken.
I believe that when it comes to filling positions it can be difficult finding the right person. I believe that on paper there can be many qualified people for a position and in those cases hiring someone with a reliable recommendation becomes the deciding factor. At my work? Was my son qualified? Yes. Was he equal to the other people looking for a job? Yes. The deciding factor: My boss trusted my judgement/recommendation...so he got the job.
In that case nepotism is justifiable in my eyes.
When there are a thousand great applicants for a great job? When the job is being paid for by the public. When the position is given to someone who isn't as qualified as the thousand? Then the person making the decision isn't working in good faith with the funds given to him by the people. He is being a poor steward of public money and weaking the position being filled.
Poor stewards should be held accountable
Then again. If there are a thousand good candidates and one happens to be highly recommended by someone the interviewer finds trustworthy? Why not choose that person? Even if the recommendation is from a brother, uncle, or other relative. It worked for Mr. Nicolas Cage and after seeing Spider Noir that he recently starred in, I'm glad he was given the chance.