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Clifford Chance to cut 115 London support staff jobs

Time for talent to shine Being a support staff is certainly not one's choice. Most of the time is due to circumstance and the fact that there are no other options around at the time so they resort to this. I wonder if partners and lawyers can cope without the paper pushers. Not everyone can as lawyers have become so used to being molly-cuddled by their PAs and paralegals that without them, they would be paralysed and will not know where to look to find a simple document or how to use the photocopier or God forbid, staple a set of documents together. The main reason for cutting jobs in CC would be because there is not enough work in all the departments and the big firms like CC are inundated with support staff and this is the time when real talent can be identified. The support staff who really work hard and are intuitive would have seen this coming and probably approached lawyers in other teams like tax, regulatory, competition etc where there is work and would have made sure that they are working on important matters and are indispensable. The ones sitting around and doing manicures and making 10 cups of tea a day and gossiping about the latest fit lawyer on the scene or facebooking all day long will certainly be directed to the door. The ones who are kept on earned it and you have got to remember, support staff too have families to feed and commitments to meet, it is not just the lawyers who are earning £200,000 a year and driving jaguars and parading in their latest TM lewin suits who have commitments. A little sensitivity needs to be exercised towards those who make you you cups of coffee or answer your calls or type up your messy scribbles.

4-Mar-2009

5:12 pm