Biglaw Firm Actually Does Something About Work/Life Balance
This firm is showing real dedication to the concept of work/life balance.
Big news from the world of Biglaw — well, at least if you care about work/life balance, it seems one firm cares too. (To be clear, you should care about work/life balance. Even if you’re hardcore Biglaw4Lyfe and scoff at the notion you’d show even a hint of weakness, you never know when burnout or other obligations will hit and then you too will enjoy some balance to your life.)
Biglaw behemoth Shearman & Sterling has just announced they are implementing an official policy allowing associates to work from home two days a month. Sure, two days a month isn’t going to radically alter anything, but it is a nice step forward. The policy is as follows:
Subject to the day-to-day needs of their respective practice groups, associates and counsel in good standing may work from locations outside of the office up to two (2) days per month; provided, that: (i) they are not needed to be physically in the office on the day(s) they choose to work remotely; (ii) their deal/case teams are informed in advance that they will be working remotely and the supervising partners on such teams have not objected to such arrangement; and (iii) they are actively working (and not just checking emails on a personal device, for example). It is the firm’s expectation that an associate or counsel working from outside of the office on a particular day will bill the same number of hours he or she would have billed in the office.
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I’ve worked at jobs with the option to work from home on occasion, and, I have to say, it is a really nice perk. Deciding who is going to wait for the super to fix the dishwasher isn’t a fight between you and your spouse; you can get to your sister’s wedding a day early and avoid the panic when the flight scheduled to arrive six hours before the ceremony is delayed; meeting with your kid’s teacher doesn’t require a half-day off, schlepping back and forth to the ‘burbs; and some days it is just nice to wear your pajamas all day long.
According to our tipster, the reaction has been pretty positive:
We just heard form the partnership that, along with boosting the Seamless budget, the firm is instituting a new work from home policy where associates can work from home two days a month. They are going to provide laser printers and scanners for every associate that wants one. These announcements came as part of a town hall meeting discussing a number of issues, but work-life balance and trying to increase associate satisfaction metrics were big issues at the meeting. From what I can tell the reaction from the associates is very positive.
And note, more than just paying lip service to a policy, the firm is backing it up with tech support. All associates and counsel can request a firm printer/scanner to assist in working from home. That shows real dedication to the concept of work/life balance, and it is refreshing to see leadership on the issue.
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(Read the full policy on the next page.)
Earlier: Biglaw Firm Makes Big Joke Out Of Work/Life Balance
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