Staffing/Recruitment

Employment of Relatives

For the purposes of employment, the term "relative" includes the following family members:

aunt	half sister	son-in-law
brother	husband	stepbrother
brother-in-law	mother	stepdaughter
daughter	mother-in-law	stepfather
daughter-in-law	nephew	stepmother
father	niece	stepsister
father-in-law	sister	stepson
first cousin	sister-in-law	uncle
half brother	son	wife

Significantly, a number of people commonly regarded as "family" (e.g., spouses of aunts or uncles, spouses of nieces or nephews, etc.) are not listed here and therefore are not regarded as relatives when employment issues are involved.

Anyone authorized to appoint, employ, promote or advance individuals, or to recommend them for appointment, employment, promotion or advancement. This would include supervisors and managers at all levels. Members of the Human Resources Division (HRD) and Delegated Employment Officers in the Field with the authority to approve personnel actions are also considered officials insofar as this employment issue is concerned.

The following restrictions and requirements apply to appointment, employment, advancement or promotion in both the competitive and excepted service within USDA. The restrictions apply to permanent, term, and temporary employment programs. An exception is allowed in certain emergency situations (see below for details).

Law and regulations prohibit officials from advocating the employment of a relative within USDA. Advocacy would include recommending (either orally or in writing) an individual for selection or promotion or referring that person for consideration. Forwarding or distributing resumes on behalf of a relative would be prohibited under this definition. Officials may respond to inquiries concerning the qualifications of a relative, but they may not recommend employment. (Note: The concern here is with recommending relatives, not with "ordinary" employees recommending relatives. If the employee is an official, as defined above, this prohibition does not apply and a certain amount of advocacy [e.g., forwarding a relative's resume] may be tolerated.)

An official may not take any of the following actions:

• Effect the appointment or advancement of a relative in any position within USDA.
  
• Direct another official within USDA to appoint or advance the relative. (A subordinate official may appoint or advance the relative of a higher level official when the subordinate has full continuing authority over the position and the higher level official has had involvement whatsoever in the matter.)
  
• Appoint or advance the relative of official within USDA when that other official has recommended the action.
  
• Exercise any influence or control over any discretionary personnel matter (e.g., initiating or approving requests for personnel actions, performance evaluations, awards, etc.) affecting a relative. (This provision essentially prohibits an official from serving as a first or second level supervisor of a relative.)
  
• Request or effect a personnel action enabling an employee to accompany a relative traveling at Government expense.

Despite the prohibitions noted above, officials may take actions affecting a relative, providing those actions are non-discretionary in nature (e.g., an upgrade due to the correction of a classification error or the issuance of a new classification standard).

Regulations do not prohibit the appointment of a relative who is a preference eligible, provided the relative's name is within reach for selection on a certificate and an alternative selection would violate the relative's entitlement to preference. This exception applies to the initial appointment action. Subsequent actions on the part of the official affecting the relative's employment (e.g., recommendation for promotion) would still be prohibited.

A student may work in the same agency with a relative subject to the same conditions and restrictions as all other employees (i.e., there is no direct reporting relationship and the relative is not in a position to influence or control the student's appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement within the agency). Agency officials may not advocate the hiring or advancement of a relative in any of the student employment programs.

Should an unacceptable situation arise (e.g., an employee is placed under a relative's supervision in the wake of a reorganization), it must be resolved as quickly as possible (ideally, within 3 months from the date the situation arose). Most of these cases can be resolved through reassignment or a minor organizational adjustment. As a last resort, resignation may be required.

In the event of a national emergency or other emergency situation posing a threat to life or property, an official may employ relatives to meet urgent needs without regard to the above restrictions. Appointments under these conditions are temporary not to exceed 1 month, but may be extended for a second month if the emergency continues.

Employment of relatives is not prohibited within the Federal Government. However, important restrictions do apply. Officials cannot (1) advocate the appointment of a relative, (2) effect a personnel action for a relative (except for non-discretionary actions and the selection of preference eligibles), or (3) supervise a relative.

Mary Weber, REE Employment Officer
(301) 504-1397 or Mary.Weber@ars.usda.gov

REE Policy Branch, HRD, AFM
Sept 28 2007 (Revised -df)