The ALB Employer of Choice (EOC) is a yearly feature which recognises the firms that lawyers are most likely to regard favourably as employers.  We are pleased to announce that this year’s EOC survey will be conducted in partnership with the Tristan Jepson Memorial Foundation.

Both the Foundation and ALB are committed to a holistic approach to employee engagement and the EOC will continue to be a gauge for a wide range of matters such as pro bono participation, firm culture, training and remuneration.  In this respect, the basic values of the EOC remain unchanged. What is new is that we now have access to the Foundation’s knowledge and experience in this area.

The Foundation has had deep involvement with developing the judging criteria for the 2013 EOC survey and will also be represented on a new independent judging panel which will determine which firms should be recognised as Employers of Choice.  As is the case with the ALB Law Awards, ALB will have no involvement in the judging process other than in situations where a voting deadlock arises.

Below we have set out a list of criteria which will be used for the 2013 EOC survey.  Fostering employee engagement and psychological health in the workplace is not an exact science and for this reason, we see these criteria as only the first iteration of a work which will develop collaboratively over time. Our intention is for this to be the start of a longer discussion with all stakeholders which will lead to the refinement of the criteria for the 2014 EOC survey and beyond.

In the meantime, the criteria below will  be used as the basis for the 2013 EOC survey. More details on how to participate in the survey will be published shortly.

CRITERIA – EMPLOYER OF CHOICE 2013

In order to be assessed as an Employer of Choice, law firms should ideally demonstrate the following:

Criterion 1: Commitment to employee satisfaction, quality employee engagement in firm decision making and responsiveness to employee feedback.  Do employees participate in your firm’s decision making? How? Do you have any examples of situations where your firm has implemented changes in response to employee feedback?

Criterion 2: Effective board and/or senior executive approved policies and procedures which support physical and psychological health and wellbeing in the workplace. Do you review the effectiveness of these policies? How? How often?

Criterion 3: Effective education relating to psychological health and safety issues in the workplace and provision of confidential and professional avenues of support for employees experiencing psychological stress or distress. Who provides the services? Are they widely known within the firm? Are managers trained to recognised signs of psychological distress? Are staff?

Criterion 4: Effective processes and/or policies established to provide reward and recognition to employees outside of annual performance reviews. Is there a consistent, ongoing system of feedback?

Criterion 5: Commitment to pro bono and CSR activities with a high level of staff participation.

Criterion 6: Commitment to monitoring employee hours at work and taking steps to ensure these hours are consistent with a healthy work/life balance; ensuring flexible work arrangements are available to employees. Do you keep track of the amount of time employees are spending in the office or hours they are required to work overall?

Criterion 7: Commitment to supporting employees (including support staff) throughout all stages of their career – for example, post promotion and returning from parental leave.

Criterion 8: Commitment to facilitating ongoing professional, commercial and legal training and development with strong input from employees. What employee engagement processes exist to assist employees in shaping their careers? How is the success of this policy measured?