Hammonds has introduced mandatory sabbaticals for all associates in its corporate department in a bid to cut costs.
The national firm will force all corporate associates to take two-month sabbaticals.
Hammonds managing partner Peter Crossley said: “We’re trying to respond to market conditions by reducing costs with as little impact to the team as possible. The point is we’re trying to avoid making more redundancies.”
The move comes after Hammonds’ corporate finance and real estate teams were hit badly by the pressures of the downturn.
Crossley said: “These are two areas that have been particularly challenging. We could consider doing this in other practice areas if it was required and suitable for that group.”
Crossley added that the firm was considering other cost-reduction measures, including a four-day week for some departments.
Earlier this year the firm lost 77 staff at the close of its redundancy consultation, which was launched in November 2008 (The Lawyer, 3 February).
The firm isn’t enforcing sabbaticals across the corporate team – people have been given the opportunity to accept or reject the proposal. All have accepted as the reasons for the sabbatical were clearly communicated and understood, and junior members of the team are as commited to the future success of the business as the partners are. So it is hardly “enforced”.
So yippee for you lawyers.
What about us support staff who weren’t given the option to accept or reject any offers, and merely instructed to move on!
Lets see who fixes your email system after hours if things go wrong!