Peculiar Times: Law Firm Stephenson Harwood Cuts Pay 20% for Full-Tiime Staff Working Remotely

 A quite peculiar development. But these are peculiar times. Some of what's happening seems right out of sci-fi likethe new film "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore."

UK iconoclastic legal site RollonFriday reports that law firm Stephenson Harwood has issued hybrid policies. No surprise, all full-time workers are mandated to be in the office 60% of their time. That means about three days a week.

However, here is the surprise: Staff who opt to operate totally remote will get a 20% haircut. Yes, their compensation will be docked 20%. In addition they will be expected to be in the office one day a month. The latter, of course, might limit the location they want to work from.

The story in this is: Will such a model become attractive to the leadership in US law firms? After all, a downturn could be coming to  parts of the US legal sector. The Stephenson Harwood idea could seem like a useful cost-saver.

Connect with Editor-in-Chief Jane Genova at janegenova374@gmail.com.

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