Op-Ed: The Part-Time Lawyer Layoff Myth

Contributed by Cynthia Thomas Calvert, Co-Founder of and Senior Advisor for the Project for Attorney Retention

Part-time lawyer layoffs can now join sewer crocodiles and kidney thefts on the list of attention-grabbing hoaxes.

During the recession, the “highest number of terminations occurred amongst part-time attorneys,” said a recent op-ed that appeared in The Glass Hammer. The source of this assertion was the respected and influential 2010 national survey of women in law firms by the National Association of Women Lawyers, but the report does not say that more part-time lawyers were laid off. A close reading shows that the report says only that male and female full-time lawyers were laid off in equal proportion but because most of the part-time lawyers are female, it follows that more part-time females than part-time males were laid off.

The NAWL report does not expressly compare the termination rates for part-time and full-time lawyers, but it does say that in 2010, 93% of firms terminated “lawyers” and that 56% of firms terminated “one or more part-time employees.” Although this does not negate the reality that a handful of firms did terminate all their part-time lawyers, it clearly suggests that law firms in general did not target part-time lawyers for layoff.

Okay, so the NAWL report doesn’t say more part-time lawyers were laid off, but is it true anyway? Nope. I reviewed statistics from NALP for the same time period and found that part-time lawyers actually were more likely to keep their jobs during the recession. As I reported on my blog, the number of part-time lawyers stayed stable at the same time that the total number of lawyers fell as a result of lay-offs. So, working part-time actually made lawyers less vulnerable to layoff. This makes sense, because part-time lawyers cost firms less money than full-time lawyers.

Why such a fuss about a minor statistic? At many law firms, working part-time is still a professional kiss of death, causing lawyers to leave rather than cut back their hours (as noted by NAWL, and confirmed by research by the Project for Attorney Retention, which I co-founded). Many bright, talented, experienced female lawyers are therefore lost to the legal profession because part-time is not a realistic option. I and others have been working – successfully – to help law firms create nonstigmatized reduced-hours programs to plug this drain on female talent. A misinformed belief that part-time equals first-fired would to turn the slowing drain into a gaping sinkhole.

There is still a lot of work to be done to remove the stigma of working part-time. Part-time and other flexible work options need to become the norm for both male and female lawyers while the legal profession shifts – as I believe it will – to the better work models of the Results-Only Work Environment created by Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson and Mass Career Customization developed by Deloitte’s Cathy Benko. In the meantime, let’s spread the word that during the recession the lowest number of terminations occurred amongst part-time lawyers.

Cynthia Thomas Calvert is a lawyer, consultant, writer and speaker who helps law firms align their business needs with the needs of their clients and lawyers. She is the co-author of Solving the Part-Time Puzzle: The Law Firm’s Guide to Balanced Hours and Flex Success: The Lawyer’s Guide to Balanced Hours. More information is available at www.ctcalvert.com.

Guest articles do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of The Glass Hammer team.