Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Lawyers State their Case on Job Flexibility
Findings: Approximately one in four Canadian lawyers (employed in law firms) reported ever having used a flexible work arrangement (FWA).
Even though many lawyers report using an FWA, most still perceive them to be career-limiting. Just one in five (22 percent) didn’t believe that a lawyer who took advantage of flexible arrangements would automatically be sent to “the B team”. Also, a majority of lawyers didn’t believe that lawyers who used either full- or part-time FWAs could ever become partner. More than half of women lawyers said they believed their FWA participation limited their professional development and made them appear less committed to their firms (versus only 21 percent of men who had used FWAs).
In other reports in this series, Catalyst has made the business case for flexibility by demonstrating that associate turnover can potentially cost Canadian firms millions of dollars. Catalyst has also emphasized the association between work-life satisfaction and associates’ intentions to stay with their firms. In other words, law firms need to make flexibility work for the sake of their bottom line.
However, our findings in this report show that lawyers, particularly women lawyers, continue to perceive flexibility options as detrimental to their careers. In this third and final report in Catalyst’s series on Flexibility in Canadian Law Firms, lawyers state their case on job flexibility. They suggest what needs to happen to law firm work environments in order to combat the negative experiences lawyers have with flexibility in their firms.
Impetus: This study was designed to capture lawyers’ experiences with, and perceptions of, flexible work arrangements in order to provide the legal community with a basis for action and change.
Methodology: A web-based survey was fielded to lawyers in more than 100 Canadian law firms in the fall of 2003.
Lead Sponsors: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP; Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP; McCarthy Tetrault LLP; Ogilvy Renault; Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, LLP
Participating Sponsors: Blake, Cassels & Graydon, LLP; Borden Ladner Gervais, LLP; Goodmans LLP; McMillan Binch LLP; Torys LLP
