Associate Bonus Watch 2009, Bonuses, Money

Associate Bonus Watch: Davis Polk & Wardwell Matches

onNovember 25, 2009 at 10:28 AM

Well, here’s an early Thanksgiving present from the partnership at Davis Polk & Wardwell to their associates. Bonus news.
DPW will be putting the same meal on the table as Cravath:

We are pleased to announce that associates in good standing will receive a bonus payment as outlined below. Bonuses will be paid on December 24th, 2009 in the same manner as the regular December monthly payroll, and will be subject to proration for those who arrived after January 1, 2009 and those on part-time schedules or other special arrangements. Bonuses for counsel and other attorneys will be determined on an individual basis and will be communicated and paid according to the normal time schedule.
Class of 2008: $ 7,500
Class of 2007: $10,000
Class of 2006: $15,000
Class of 2005: $20,000
Class of 2004: $25,000
Class of 2003 and senior: $30,000
We thank you for your efforts over the past year, and wish you and your family a wonderful holiday season.
The Management Committee

In this season of thankfulness, some DPW associates feel they deserve a few more blessings than what the firm is offering.

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The instant reaction from DPW associates is a little more annoyed than what we saw from Cravath and all the other Cravath followers:

In airport, just received news of bonus crap. Said [the word] “mutherf**kers” in security line — they’re still searching my bags now….

Can you imagine trying to explain this to TSA officials? “I make $160,000 a year, but I’m only getting a $7,500 bonus. So I’m pretty pissed. You wouldn’t understand.”
People who do not work in our little community probably can’t understand why anybody would be disappointed with a bonus of this size. But consider what one friend emailed in:

I’m working the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I’ll be working the Friday after Thanksgiving. Yeah, I bet the DPW partners are “pleased to announce” that they are making as much money as possible off of my work, yet sharing as little as possible with me. Way to cheap us while working on a holiday. … F*** Y** CRAVATH!