Setting work-life priorities in demanding law firm

Staying at Meredith Connell is a decision that its skilled prosecutors and support staff seem to think is sound judgement. The Auckland law firm is the Office of the Crown Solicitor in Auckland, and conducts all indictable prosecutions in the region. The work is often demanding as it involves serious crime such as murder, manslaughter, rape, fraud or serious drugs charges.  

It takes seven years of on-the-job training for prosecutors to acquire the skills to prosecute jury trials in the High Court, so staff retention is crucial to the future of the firm. Similar pre-requisites apply to support staff as well. This experience can only be gained in few legal environments.

The stressful and taxing nature of this type of work influenced Meredith Connell's work-life balance initiatives and its approach to valued staff. The firm specifically wanted to accommodate employees' family or social commitments, and to encourage women to return from parental leave.

The firm has seen rapid growth over the last six years. From a staff of 80, it now employs 139: of the 76 lawyers, 46 are women, and of the 21 partners, four are women. This increase in numbers prompted a greater overt commitment to the maintenance and communication of the firm's culture.

Currently, 52% of women employees and 31% of men have working patterns that take into account some aspect of their work-life balance preferences and needs.

Sue Gray, as Meredith Connell's EEO partner, and Hugh Caughley as the CEO, are responsible for managing EEO. All 21 partners are involved in decisions concerning the change in status of any employee.

The firm's work-life principles are incorporated into the company's existing culture of individual accountability. When an employee wants to change their working arrangement, Meredith Connell weighs up how both parties can make the new situation work, not why it cannot work.

The partners see a direct link between the flexibility available at Meredith Connell and the low staff turnover. In the 2006 financial year professional staff turnover was five per cent and for support staff it was 15%. Both these figures are generally half that of the legal industry figures.

The firm's parental leave policy has been successful in retaining women. Of the 18 women who have taken maternity leave over the last three years, 17 returned, one deciding to leave Auckland for lifestyle reasons. Meredith Connell says the value of low staff turnover can conservatively be quantified at $360,000 per annum.

There is a sense of belonging and camaraderie within teams in the firm, and this, plus a desire not to let fellow team members down, results in very low absenteeism.

Work-life initiatives include:

• Leave: ten days special (sick) leave; four weeks annual leave; an extra week's paid leave after the birth of a child; study leave; six weeks paid leave to a new parent with prime parental responsibility.
• Finances: free income protection insurance for professional staff; free legal services to staff buying or selling a home; taxis for staff members returning home after working late.
• Flexible work practices: due to the nature of the work, it is not possible for professional staff to work less than a full day but a number of mothers work one to four days per week; partners can and do work part-time; many staff have remote access to the firm's computer network; a number of older staff members work part-time.
• Communication with absent staff members: email contact; absent staff are invited to all office social functions.
• Health and wellbeing: EAP Support; weekly subsidised yoga on site; flu vaccinations.
• Social events: Christmas party; winter party; quiz night; touch rugby; indoor netball; tennis competitions; Taupo Round the Lake Relay; Auckland Corporate Challenge; childrens' Christmas Party; team functions/retreats.
• Study: course fees; paid study leave.
• David Foster Memorial Award: an annual award worth $2,000 for an employee who has displayed exemplary service and/or loyalty.

Meredith Connell won the Large Organisation Award at the 2006 EEO Trust Work & Life Awards, that took place on 31 August 2006.
To read more about their entry, see here.