Linklaters has cut associate pay bands by an average of seven per cent and slashed bonuses across the firm.
In contrast to other top City firms, Linklaters associates will move up through the salary bands this year but reduced rates mean that most junior lawyers will receive a pay rise of just two to four per cent.
Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith and Slaughter and May have all frozen wages at current levels until the end of the 2010 financial year.
The Linklaters announcement means that first year trainees will continue to receive £37,400.
However newly-qualified rates fell 7.6 per cent to £61,500; one year PQE rates dropped 3.4 per cent to £68,000; two year PQE salaries fell 11.6 per cent £73,000; and three year PQEs will receive £85,000, down 6.4 per cent on the previous year.
Linklaters director of HR Jill King said: “We will progress people through the normal career structure. We have identified those pay bands as proportionate to the current climate.”
Unlike the firm’s junior lawyers, support staff at the firm will not receive a pay rise this year with rates frozen at current levels.
The firmwide bonus, paid to all staff from the year’s profits, will be paid this year but was reduced from £2,700 to £1,500.
The performance bonus, paid to staff based on individual performance, will also be paid but the size of the bonus pool is smaller than last year.
King would not comment on how much less the firm had put aside for the performance bonus.
So this is where it gets interesting… 2-4% isn’t too bad. Better, methinks, than zero?
This article isn’t very clear – maybe because linklaters hasnt communicated its message very well – but it seems to me that this results in Linklaters now being firmly ahead of the other MC firms on pay?
A&O for an NQ is stlll 65k so the best paid at NQ. They have not reduced NQ salaries, just frozen.
It should be noted that NQ and 1PQE is the same pay.
Indeed. Instead of being frozen at last year’s salary level/band thus earning exactly the same as last year at the other MC firms, an associate at Linklaters moves up to the next band. The next band up is reduced from last year, but the move up means that you get an increase. For me, its about 4%.
NQ and 1 PQE the same pay? That doesn’t sound correct at all.
Seems to me the legal press is letting A&O, Slaughters, FF and CC off the hook here. They should be taking them to task as to why Links are now paying their associates much more than they are!!!
this article is seriously misleading.
how on earth can this be a pay CUT?!
Links associates will all progress to a higher pay level meaning they will now take home significantly more than last year. And significantly more than associates at the other MC firms! Links assocs have just stepped ahead of the game.
I wonder what their US JD team is getting. Still a massive COLA and bonuses that would make their UK lawyers cry?