To think it's inappropriate to be best friends with your line manager

[kiltia]

When said line manager is responsible for your supervision, management and annual salary review?

(Public sector professional job, relatively high stress and risk involved.)

Said employee and line manager regularly take days of annual leave together and go out drinking, work from each other's house several days a week, lots of WhatsApp messaging regularly.

My concerns are lack of objectivity with regard to salary review, management and if for example a complaint came about the member of staff. Surely it shouldn't be literally a best friend managing these situations?

AIBU to say that the decent and professional thing would be for member of staff and/or line manager to suggest to the grandparent manager that staff member is line managed by one of the other two possible line managers?

@Somebodylikeyew

7% pay rise year on year in the public sector?? I’d love to know where that is.

Me too!

My checkout manager has his 2 daughters working in the same department. They get special treatment. Hate it.

I think it’s impossible to police friendships.

If you think it’s a fairness issue, take to HR - but do be sure there really is one. Don’t create hassle for the sake of it.

It’s a conflict of interest…should be declared (by those involved) and mitigants put in place to protect against perceived or actual unfair treatment. Those involved would never recognise it as a conflict of interest though which is exactly why it is problematic. I’m not surprised you are annoyed about it. I don’t blame you. Is there a ‘managing conflicts’ or ‘conflicts of interest’ or even a code of conduct that you could refer to?

Very hard. My workplace is like this, a school. All worked together for years, head teacher best friends with some, married to another etc. Makes it very hard to give feedback as a parent as it is seen as an attack, or raise issues as a member of staff. Headteacher is also best friends with wife of chair of governors, another parent. Is godparent to their children etc. Makes it very hard to trust the objectivity.

I became best friends with my line manager through working together. She moved companies twice and then I followed. Each time getting a good pay rise and better job, which she organised. I think it probably did look off to people when I first joined the two new companies because we were so close and got on like a house on fire and I needed to integrate into a new team where she was the Boss but I was the only person who knew her really well. But the thing is, she trusted me and we worked so well together that we got really really good results as a team. I loved working with her and was so motivated and wanted to do the best I possibly could because she put so much faith in me. I am now working under someone else and I really miss her. I think I did get special treatment and it would have been annoying for my team mates but I also think I earned respect over time and deserved the promotions etc. I don’t have the same rapport with my new Manager however so it will be interesting to see how my career progresses now. It is definitely easier to prove yourself to someone who you naturally click with though.

One of my best friends was my line manager for several years (how we met). There were 3 of us very close and had regular nights out, weekends away and holidays together.
There was definitely never any favourable treatment and she has never shared anything she shouldn't have.
The friendship isn't an issue but the professionalism of individual managers is.