COVINGTON & BURLING — MESSAGES FROM ASSOCIATES OUTSIDE NEW YORK ABOUT 2014 BONUSES
Hello, Covington bonuses in non-NY offices were communicated (at least in my office) by memorandum. I am extremely disappointed as are the two other associates I’ve spoken with. Not anywhere close to market. Even for those who hit their hours.
In DC a memo of all associate bonuses (in DC) was provided (average, median, max, per class year). The MAXIMUM bonus for class years appears to be the Davis Polk scale. But the average bonus appears to be about HALF the max.
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I’ll try to find and provide more detail. Covington is an ostrich with its head in the sand when it comes to the market for associate bonuses.
In case you do a post on Covington (DC) bonuses, you can add my anecdata to your list. I am a junior associate with [2000+ hours] with very good reviews and got a bonus [at roughly 30%] of DPW. That’s [30%,] not to be confused with the luxurious alternative of [30% off]. Every junior associate I spoke with either didn’t receive a bonus or received less than 50% of DPW. As far as I can tell, Covington is the cheapest of them all. I feel undervalued and cheated…. That leaves zero motivation to do more than the bare minimum this year.
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I’m sure you’ve already heard about Covington’s abysmal bonuses for non-NYC associates, communicated internally on Friday, March 27. This was across the firm (DC/west coast/etc, excluding NYC, where associates get paid the market scale). There is no uniform scale outside NYC, as the firm uses an “individualized” system, but it is clear from chatter that everyone is upset. Both “regular” billers (think 2000 hours) and high billers (2200+ hours) with excellent reviews getting anywhere from 20-40 percent less than DPW market. If they tell you some associates did receive a market bonus, they are lying. Covington has always used the opacity of its bonus process to hide subpar bonuses, but this year this abject cheapness is blowing out into the open. Very unclear to everyone how a firm that purports to be “elite” thinks they can pay their associates substantially less than allegedly “peer” firms, and even what tier-two or regional firms are paying. Recruiters take note!
Have you heard about Covington DC’s atrocious bonuses? Way below market. Associates are upset and disgruntled.
Months and months (and months) ago, you gave Covington a favorable write-up for its bonuses when the firm announced that it was paying a “maximum” of the DPW scale to its New York associates.
Well, now there are grizzly facts emerging much closer to the firm’s cold black heart — its D.C. office. Covington does not pay a Christmas bonus to its D.C. associates until almost Easter. This, simply put, is a dick move. Unapologetic cost saving is clearly a key motivation, as massive associate turnover at the first of the year means far fewer bonuses paid. This calculated delay is also a way to pay low bonuses when nobody is really reporting bonus news. But I saw how well that worked for Mayer Brown, and I thank you for spreading the word.
So here are the details of my bonus: with great reviews and over 2000 hours, I received significantly UNDER HALF of the DPW scale. Among people who were bonus-eligible, the firm paid roughly half of the DPW scale for my class year.
Another key detail: it was a wildly profitable year at Covington. Management has given a variety of insulting and unsatisfying explanations for the mismatch between their profits and our bonuses. Several have blamed the cost of moving into the new office. Maybe I’m being unreasonable, but moving the firm away from Pennsylvania Avenue, the Metro station, and any good quick lunch options is not a bonus in my book. One partner flippantly remarked that there’s more to life and work than just money. This, I will admit, is theoretically true. If the partners had left us with any time to spend with our families, to nurture social bonds with friends, or even to pick up our dry cleaning regularly, they might have a good point. Still other partners have denied that DPW defined the market. Facts, I suppose, are unimpressive to this last group. The only convincing explanation for the partners’ behavior is the one I constantly feel but never hear: f**k you, associates. We’re doing this because f**k you.
Let us hope that Covington’s ability to masquerade as a peer firm is at least diminished going forward. We are peers, apparently, with Mayer Brown. I am f**king done with this place.
Earlier: Associate Bonus Watch: Covington & Burling (New York)