Holds junior lawyer salaries steady
Clyde & Co has today confirmed an autumn 2021 trainee retention score of 79%.
The City firm said in a statement that out of 47 qualifying trainees, 37 will be staying on in newly qualified (NQ) solicitor roles. None are held on fixed-term contracts.
Clydes’ London office will take 29 trainees, whilst its Manchester office will retain four and its Scotland office two trainees. A further two London trainees are qualifying in the firm’s Middle East and Africa practice.
James Major, training principal, said: “We congratulate all of our newly qualified lawyers and look forward to the contribution they will make to the firm. Our early careers programme is central to our success as a firm and we regularly review our training programmes and development opportunities so that people can develop a long-term career with us. We are committed to investing in their continued development while broadening access to our schemes to those from all backgrounds and continuing to improve the diversity of our intake.”
In the last autumn round, Clydes kept on 36 out of 40 qualifying trainees. With one NQ retained on a fixed-term contract, this gave the firm a 2020 score of 90%, or 88%, depending on your reading of the numbers.
Clydes also revealed early details of its offer and acceptance rate for its 2021 vacation schemes. It had 36 students join across two schemes, made 31 training contract offers, and has so far received 18 acceptances. Final acceptances are not due back until mid-August.
At the same time, Clydes confirmed it has held London junior lawyer salaries steady. NQ pay remains unchanged at £70,000, while trainees will continue on £40,000 in year one, rising to £42,000 in year two. Clydes raised salaries to these rates back in 2019.
In August 2020, Clydes cut junior lawyer salaries by £2,000 in response to the financial uncertainty brought about by the pandemic, but later uprated pay to previous levels in the autumn. The firm, in line with others, had deferred salary reviews and promotions in April 2020 for six months.
Clydes rewarded its lawyers and staff in May this year with bonuses of 3% (or £1,000, whichever was larger) “in recognition of the part everyone played in our success during difficult circumstances”.
Find out how other law firms performed in the autumn 2021 retention round here.
