question about filling out job application

[elf]

I'm filling out a job application for a city job in Florida. The application asks "do Have you any relatives working for the City of __." I have a cousin who I haven't seen in years who I know still works in the same field in the city. Does it hurt my chances if I say yes. I wasn't even going to ask my cousin about it..

MY dh thinks I should use any contact I have.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

I guess it depends on the company, but years ago when I was a manager at a department store it was in your favor to say yes, we preferred to hire relatives of "good" employees.

 

[bdcp]

Always answer honestly. That counts for more in my book. Intentionally lying is never the way to go.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

If the question say "working for the City of X" this means is the relative actually an employee of the City itself. It is not asking if a relative works "in" the City.

 

[KristiKat]

I say tell the truth because it they find out later it could mean trouble for you. That being said the place where I work is not allowed to hire relatives even if the person working there is a good worker and vouches for you. The way the company sees it, if family drama ensues then it could turn into a problem at work.

 

[Cindy B]

There is a difference between of the city and in the city.

For example lets say, Cousin worked for city of Anytown as an accountant.

That is OF the city. The City of Anytown is what is on his/her paycheck.


Cousin works in the city of Anytown as an accountant.
Cousin could work in any firm =which just happens to be in that city locale.

There is a difference. If the cousin works FOR the city in which you are applying, I'd put it down. If you don't speak often, maybe you could put minimal contact- that way you are disclosing the familial relationship but also the fact that you don't speak often. Some cities have rules against hiring family memmbers for jobs in order to avoid nepotism.

 

[bdcp]

There is a difference between of the city and in the city.

For example lets say, Cousin worked for city of Anytown as an accountant.

That is OF the city. The City of Anytown is what is on his/her paycheck.


Cousin works in the city of Anytown as an accountant.
Cousin could work in any firm =which just happens to be in that city locale.

There is a difference. If the cousin works FOR the city in which you are applying, I'd put it down. If you don't speak often, maybe you could put minimal contact- that way you are disclosing the familial relationship but also the fact that you don't speak often. Some cities have rules against hiring family memmbers for jobs in order to avoid nepotism.

OP wasn't clear on which it is and hasn't come back, so I'm still not sure whether she meant to say "for" also. If it's just "in" then her answer should be no which is telling the truth.

 

[elf]

Hi all thank you for responses.

The application says "do Have you any relatives working for the City of __."

We are both librarians, but there are multiple libraries within the district and they didn't specify which library the job was available for. I have talked to her once in 20 years (about 4 years ago) but my father talks to his sister her aunt once/twice a year, which is why I know she still works there.

 

[dakcp2001]

In my former company they ask just to be sure they do not place to family members together. It would not be fair to have your cousin as your supervisor, because you might get better treatment. It doesn't normally help or hurt your chances unless you are trying to work on the same team.

 

[disykat]

Since this is someone you don't speak with, I'd answer "no" without feeling dishonest. She can't vouch for you, there isn't a strong family connection that might cause problems. No reason to say yes IMO.

 

[tasha99]

I would say "yes." Even if you don't know your cousin well, she's still a relative. I would think answering "no" could cause problems later due to dishonesty. Obviously, this is a gray area, and ymmv.

 

[elf]

Thank you everyone, it is a gray area. I think I will answer yes and hope that I'm not immediatly eliminated because of it. I have to send it in tomorrow. I'll probably change my mind a dozen times by then.

 

[angwill]

I also worked for a big where if you had a relative working for the company you would not be hired. I actually had an uncle that worked for the company but had no clue till I was working there for about 5 years. Had they found out one of us would have to quit or they would choose who was fired.

 

[elf]

oh Geez, now what. I'm back to not mentioning it. If I kept in touch I guess it would be different but since we didn't I'll try to do it guilt free. Really need full time job.
Thank you

 

[lovesmurfs]

Worst case scenario - you don't mention it. You get hired. Someone finds out the relationship, you get fired for not mentioning it.

Unless you're willing to practice your surprised face and say, "Oh, Marla, I had no IDEA you worked for the City!" you should be honest. The question is not one about references, it's making sure that two close relatives aren't doing something wonky.

Example -- I worked for a township during summers and winter breaks in college. It came out that the Purchasing Agent and her husband, who was the Director of Public Works, were in cahoots, ordering lawn equipment on the Township's dime and taking it home. I seem to remember the embezzlement was nearly 6 figures before someone caught them.

You could put "Cousin - Distant" or something else to indicate that the relationship is not a close one.

 

[happygirl]

I would 100 % mention it. You have no idea if she a higher up or not.

 

[kimgg]

Yes, state it and don't lie. Most gov't agencies are just going to make sure you don't supervise or be supervised by a relative. Gov't agencies are too large to make a blanket rule no two employees can be related. I work for the gov't in another state and we have lots of staff who are related.

I had a recent situation in which a family member who works for another gov't agency denied being related to his niece who was applying for a job - w/o going all in to it, it turned in to a huge fiasco and cost her the job when they wanted to hire her and did a background check and found out they had lied. It was completly unnecessary as telling the truth would have hurt nothing. I tried to tell them beforehand - but what do I know??? (I was 100 % right).

So tell the truth. It won't help you get the job, but it could cause you to lose it if you lie.

 

[BigPumba]

answer honestly because any misrepersation on your part can be used against you even after you have the job

 

[angierae]

Since this is someone you don't speak with, I'd answer "no" without feeling dishonest. She can't vouch for you, there isn't a strong family connection that might cause problems. No reason to say yes IMO.

Do NOT follow this advice. My niece got a very lucrative job with the county and one of the questions was "Do you have any family members who have been convicted of a felony?"

She hasn't had contact with her dad in five or six years, so she had no idea what he'd been up to (at that point none of his troubles with the law were felonies) so instead of checking with other family members, she just put down "no", since it was true to the best of her knowledge.

She lost that job, even after there was a full investigation including her having to give up her phone records to "prove" she hadn't had any contact with her dad in years.