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IWS Documented News Service
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Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach
School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell University
16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky
New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau
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European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin Foundation)

European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC)

 

EMCC case studies - Short-time working in the legal sector: the Flex Programme at Norton Rose (United Kingdom) [9 November 2010]

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef1058.htm

or

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/pubdocs/2010/58/en/1/EF1058EN.pdf

[full-text, 13 pages]

 

Author: Foundation

 

Summary: Norton Rose LLP, part of the Norton Rose Group, has been one of the few law firms in the UK that did not make staff redundant during the recent crisis. Instead it launched a one year 'flex scheme' in May 2009 that allowed the firm to either put volunteer partners and salaried staff on a four-day week for an agreed period at 85% of their normal salary, or to offer a sabbatical of between one and three months at 30% of their pay. This case study focuses on how the flex scheme was applied to staff in the UK's London office. The aim is to assess the effectiveness of the programme in keeping staff in employment and maintaining the company's viability in economically difficult times.

 

CONTENTS

Impact of the crisis on the UK commercial law sector

Purpose of the study

Company profile

Legal and policy context

The flex scheme at Norton Rose

Lessons learned and conclusions

References

Annex: Consulted individuals

 

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Stuart Basefsky                   
Director, IWS News Bureau                
Institute for Workplace Studies 
Cornell/ILR School                        
16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor             
New York, NY 10016                        
                                   
Telephone: (607) 255-2703                
Fax: (607) 255-9641                       
E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu                  
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