Salary Cuts, Start Dates

Christmas Salary Cuts at K&L Gates

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We have some good news and some bad news for incoming K&L Gates associates.
I’m feeling charitable, so I’ll lead with the good news. Our sources report that everybody is officially set to start on January 4th. The firm called people over the weekend to mention some final, minor details, but people will have a job on the first business day of the New Year.
Yay! Doesn’t everybody feel good?
Okay, now the bad news. One of those minor details was a big old salary cut for incoming first-year salaries. The cut will really put K&L Gates first years on the low end of the Biglaw salary pool.
UPDATE: The salary cut does not apply to all incoming first-year associates. Details after the jump.


A tipster reported a very depressing holiday phone call from K&L Gates over the weekend:

I’m an incoming associate set to start in January. Received a phone call from the firm wishing me a Merry Christmas, which was quickly followed with “we have also decided to cut first year associate compensation from 130k to 115k, enjoy your holiday season!”

That’s kind of like going into a drug store and buying a pack of gum to mask the purchase of embarrassing hemorrhoid medication.
And I’m not sure that incoming K&L Gates associates appreciate having their salary cut explained as if was an afterthought. Fifteen grand might be a stocking stuffer to some of the partners, but for most of the incoming associates, that is a lot of money.
But I suppose having a job at all is the real present most incoming associates want. So, once again, congratulations to all of the K&L Gates associates who will have the opportunity to start busting their butts for a reduced salary come January. In this economy, you guys are the lucky ones.
UPDATE: With respect to your comments, we think the office in question is Pittsburgh. If you have information about other K&L Gates offices, please email us. Thanks.
CORRECTION: Okay, this appears to not be coming out of the Pittsburgh office. A source claims the firm is assuring the incoming first-year class that they are not getting pushed down to $115K, but our source didn’t have any information outside of the Pittsburgh office.
K&L Gates has still not responded to our (relatively simple) inquiry about which office — if any — was calling incoming associates this weekend to inform them of a pay cut. We’ll let you know if they do.
Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of salary cuts

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