In a week of extreme mysogyny there’s a long white cloud with a silver lining.
We congratulate the firm but do notice a in the numbers that there might be a way to go when looking at gender split within the firm.
The article states but does not comment on the fact
Simpson Grierson was made up of two-thirds female lawyers and one-third males, with an equal spread at all levels.
At the senior executive level, 30 per cent were women.
Is it just us but one would hope that senior executive level would reflect the totality of firm employment by gender
Anyway it’s a start….
Stuff NZ.com reports
When it comes to eliminating the gender pay gap, law firm Simpson Grierson has set the gold standard.
The leading national commercial law firm achieved a zero per cent pay gap earlier this year and has already smashed its goal of having 20 per cent more female law partners by 2020.
Two years ago, the pay gap sat at 2 per cent.
Simpson Grierson’s efforts were recognised last week at the YWCA Equal Pay Awards, where it received the gold award.
Human resources director Jo Copeland said gender was just one focus of the law firm’s entire diversity programme, with ethnicity, accessibility and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transexual and intersex initiatives also covered.
Simpson Grierson was made up of two-thirds female lawyers and one-third males, with an equal spread at all levels.
At the senior executive level, 30 per cent were women.
Copeland said some of the initiatives targeted at improving gender inequality included allowing staff to buy more leave and not using pro rata rates.
Simpson Grierson’s Nick Wilson took advantage of the firm’s flexi-leave option this year to spend more time with his family.
This meant, for example, if a lawyer only worked part time but met budget, that staff member would get all of that bonus, rather than a percentage cut because they only worked part-time.
The use of performance bands meant salaries were determined by experience and performance, so staff at similar levels got paid the same amount.
It was also important to have a centralised remuneration system. Instead of letting each team’s leader set the pay when hiring someone, a remuneration committee or human resources team would ensure better consistency and fairness across the company.
One of the most important things Simpson Grierson does is give salary reviews to staff who go on parental leave.
“Most organisations in New Zealand give a 3 per cent salary increase each year. So if you’re away for a year, you’re automatically three per cent behind,” Copeland said.
This lag in pay worsened if parents took leave with each additional child.
Copeland said they implemented these types of initiatives because the legal industry was coming under fire for being hostile to families and working mothers and not having enough women at senior levels.
She said despite reaching zero pay gap, there was no way the firm would take its foot off the pedal when it came to improving gender-related issues in the workplace.
“How can businesses in New Zealand have a 14 per cent pay gap? It beggars belief.”
Buying leave, or “flexi-leave”, was an idea Copeland saw used in Australia when she worked there and something lawyer Nick Wilson has used this year.
He bought seven days extra leave to go on holiday with his wife and two young children.
With three weeks enforced leave over Christmas, that did not leave much during the year to take time off to spend with the family.
Wilson has worked in other law firms, including in London, and said Simpson Grierson led the way in terms of work flexibility.
Although there were days when long hours were required and last minute client demands needed to be met, having flexible working options helped.
“If people feel they’re being looked after more and have flexibility and freedom, I think it means people are more engaged and are happy to be [at work],” Wilson said.
Chief executive of YWCA Monica Briggssaid it was heartening to see the gender inclusive culture at Simpson Grierson, especially as more females have been graduating into law than males.
“They have smashed their own targets, while focusing on continuous improvement. Most importantly, they publicly advocate for gender equality which is a real mantra of our campaign,” she said.
YWCA also awarded its accreditation, the Equal Pay Best Practice Compact, to four law firms (Simpson Grierson, Russell McVeagh, Bell Gully and Duncan Cotterill) as a visible endorsement of their seriousness about gender equality.
