Work-life balance, colleagues making in-house counsel stay

On the flip side, career opportunities, salary and further experience noted as reasons to seek a change in work

In-house lawyers in New Zealand who are planning to stay with their current employers say they are not considering a change because of work-life balance and people they work with.
 
The information comes from the Salary Guide 2016 report of the New Zealand Law Society and Hays Legal which surveyed almost 2,000 members of the society.
 
Asked whether they are considering a new role, 32% of respondents said yes while 68% said no. Of those who said they are staying put, 62% noted work-life balance as the primary reason and 41% indicated the people they work with.
 
Meanwhile, for the question that allowed multiple choices, both career opportunities and further experience were indicated by 32% of respondents. The survey also revealed that 27% are staying because of salary, 17% because of employer reputation and 10% because of benefits.
 
Of those who said they are looking at other opportunities, 64% said it’s because of career opportunities, 44% said salary, 42% said work-life balance and 19% said management issues.
 
There are also lawyers looking to move out of the profession, with 12% indicating so. Meanwhile, 8% said they are considering change because of employer reputation, while 7% said people they work with and 6% said benefits or overseas opportunities.
 
The survey revealed that most in-house counsel are working full time (81%) rather than part time (19%). Most in-house lawyers surveyed have been working with their current employer for 5-10 years (25%).
 
Next was 3-5 years (23%) followed by more than 10 years (22%), 2-3 years (12%), 1-2 years (11%), 6 months to 1 year (5%) and less than 6 months (2%).
 

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