Have you had a mother call to arrange an interview for her son? A father who wanted to negotiate pay and benefits for his daughter? How about a parent who called to complain that his child was being treated unfairly at work, that other employees are “being mean” or that your written warning was inappropriate? If you haven’t had parents calling you concerned about their kids at work, stay tuned, as you just may. And we’re not talking about 16 year old kids who work the snackbar at the neighborhood pool. Apparently, “helicopter parents,” who hover over their children are also doing so regarding their adult, college educated offspring in employment matters. Helicopter parenting emerged on college campuses several years ago with some parents calling to complain about grades, seeking to influence decisions, or worried about kids’ social well being. That phenomena seems to have spread to the workplace. How’s that going over with hiring managers and supervisors? As you might expect, not very well. Most managers have enough worries just dealing with their employees, let alone the parents. Then there’s the perceived conflict of individuals seeking responsible, adult, well paid positions and yet they seem to be reliant on their parents. That’s not a situation a lot of organizations are happy to deal with. Perhaps “Meet the Parents” will take on a whole new meaning.