When an office is small to medium sized and there are family members or friends involved and employed and/or in charge, this can cause huge problems.  Anyone who is good friends with the boss will probably think they can get away with more than their colleagues and may even start to bend the office rules which can also cause problems for line managers.

It is not unknown that familiarity in the office causes much friction.  There are notable cases where employees familiar with the CEO or managing director are often absent from their office desks at 9am because they feel they are OK to come in later than everyone else.

There could be favouritism shown directly by the boss that may range from allowing their friends to have the best computers and office chairs to ensuring they get to go on training courses.

If such favouritism does occur in the office it should be brought to the attention of the CEO or MD to ensure he is aware of his own actions or to draw to his attention that he is causing conflict within the workforce and that this is having a negative effect on productivity.

If the company is large enough it is preferable to speak to an HR department and have the HR representative deal with the matter directly with the boss.