R: Nepotism Is a Social Good

Virtually none of us have been in the position to hire or fire employees. However, most of us have gone through some kind of hiring process. Everyone wants to be “fair.” But it often seems like those who get the job have some kind of connection. Getting hired through a connection is not, strictly speaking, nepotism, but it is a useful example of a non-meritocratic hiring practice. Nepotism can be thought of as “nephew-ism.” The original word refers to the privileges extended to the nephews of popes, who were, in some cases, their bastard sons. In our debate, we will define nepotism as the practice of favoring relatives or friends by giving them jobs.

Those in the affirmative will argue that nepotism is good for society. Hiring family members or close friends promotes a healthy work environment. The bosses care about more than the company’s bottom line. They care, in a real sense, about the flourishing of their employees. Relatives have personal stakes in an endeavor like this. They are not motivated solely by a paycheck. It is important to them that their family succeeds. Nepotism can also help preserve cultural traditions and even the family itself. For example, a third-generation watchmaker should hire his daughter over a stranger because the daughter will have more of an incentive to carry on the family traditions and keep the family business going. In a world where people move to new cities or regions in pursuit of employment, the watchmaker’s family also remains more intact if he is able to employ them. Regardless of the talent of a random applicant, the watchmaker is able to trust his family far more. Perhaps they don’t have the same knack for watchmaking, but he can teach them. And that, too, will be valuable time his family spends together.

Those in the negative will find nepotism highly disagreeable. It is simply not fair. We are teaching people that they do not need to work hard, learn new things, or behave themselves to succeed in life. An anti-nepotistic society requires young men and women to make something of themselves. They have to learn something useful, comport themselves, and remain industrious to earn a living. If you bum around on a couch somewhere, your uncle is not going to rescue you. For similar reasons, nepotism is bad because it stifles creativity. So many lifesaving medicines, innovative medical treatments, and useful technologies would not have been developed were there not some fairness in hiring practices. Nepotism favors people from similar backgrounds. This means that innovation suffers as new perspectives are rarely heard. Furthermore, nepotistic organizations are prone to abuse. Friends or relatives may get pushed to work harder than a stranger. Promotions and other significant decisions would be made behind closed doors, with personal factors being brought in unfairly.

So, should we be nepotists? Is a society in which nepotism is practiced by most people a just one? When does nepotism go too far? Is it possible for hiring practices to ever truly be meritocratic?