Develop Work-Life Integration and Flexible Work Schedules
Businesses lose between $450 billion and $550 billion per year due to employee disengagement and burnout. Research shows that more autonomy produces a happier and more engaged employee rather than increased pay, especially with regard to Millennials.
Work-life integration is different from work-life balance. Work-life balance views work and life as separate spheres competing against one another for time and attention. It doesn’t work well, especially in the knowledge economy where it’s difficult to shut down one part of life for another part of life. Work-life integration acknowledges that each part of life shouldn’t compete for time seeking an equal balance, but instead seeks each part of life helping to support and nurture other parts of life. It’s creating supportive structures within our professional, personal lives and communities and not a single-minded focus on maximizing one aspect of life. It’s the intersectionality of: work, home, community, and self. What that translates into is that each aspect of life becomes integrated without sacrificing any other aspect of life and viewing each aspect as supporting and nurturing of other parts of one’s life.
Perhaps the most important aspect of work-life integration is finding the passion of each person. If a lawyer can thread, for example, a love of art through each sector of their lives, that attorney will be much more likely to find not only success but sustainability. If an employee is allowed to pursue their passion at work for 5-10% of their time, they are much more likely to be happy, healthy and will remain longer at a position. If you’re able to pinpoint what truly inspires a colleague, you’re able to make a connection. That connectedness is critical in identifying how to retain an employee and also how to engage and motivate them. It’s the difference between thriving in a workplace and surviving in a workplace. Google, for example, has a 20% rule which allows employees to devote an entire day each week to a Google related passion project of their own choosing. The results are “phenomenal”.
Recommendations for helping employees achieve work-life integration include:
- Set values rather than policies in the workplace.
- Encourage flexible schedules including remote work and project based work.
- Encourage and award vacations to avoid burnout.
- Reward employees who exemplify the values of an organization and not simply for winning or bringing in a new client.
- Encourage dialogue.
- Encourage self-expression.
- Encourage using “work hours” to fulfill personal/home needs.
- Support individuals bringing their authentic selves to work
- Consider on-site services (in-house health clinics and mental health services so employees can seek help early; offer free nutritious meals and massage therapists on-site).
In a post-COVID economy, flexible and remote work options are now expected by employees. Although many industries already use different work arrangements to maximize productivity and to reduce burnout, the legal profession has been slow to adopt many flexible work options. Flexible schedules and remote work respect lawyers’ desire for autonomy and control over professional and personal lives.
Ways that legal organizations can promote that sense of autonomy is by strategically delivering a message of flexibility in where, when, and how lawyers meet their employment obligations. Examples of these messages include creating policies that explain that an inability to meet a billable hour target will not automatically result in termination or that encourage lawyers to proactively discuss why they may not meet a target without fear of penalty. They demonstrate the firm values employee health, renewal, and commitment to family more than a single metric of time. Likewise, setting a maximum limit on the number of billable hours that may be rewarded reinforces the message that quality performance and client service is the firm’s main objective. In addition: there is value in time off. Assume every firm employee will have at least two weeks of vacation a year when creating billable hour targets.
Further, legal employers should recognize that an inability to “disconnect” due to technology interferes with well-being. Studies show individuals will actually hold their breath while scrolling through and checking email. Accordingly, think about an organization policy to discourage email use at night or before a certain hour in the morning. Leadership is instrumental in forming new habits for an organization. Leaders within a legal organization should not routinely break the rule of respecting an employee’s personal time and should refrain from setting 24/7/365 communication expectations.
Beyond flexible schedules, employees should be encouraged to disconnect from work and recharge by taking vacations and not engaging in any work while they are on vacation. Taking extended breaks from work makes employees happier and more productive (68%). Some companies have encouraged employees to use vacation time by paying them. Many tech industry leaders have already recognized burnout is a very real danger and they’ve used creative ways to encourage time away from the office. FullContact started giving “paid, paid vacations” where they pay employees $7,500 to take a full vacation. The legal profession should value their attorneys and employees as much as other industries.
Recommendations
1. Provide real-time feedback.
It is critical for employees to obtain real-time feedback especially in remote work situations.
- Specify what “real-time” means (within days or weeks, not months)
- Connect feedback to work-life integration (e.g., checking in on workload, stress levels, capacity)
- Include feedback on remote work effectiveness and any needed adjustments
- Address how to give feedback that respects boundaries (not during off-hours)
2. Clearly communicate that if a family or personal obligation arises and interferes with a lawyer’s ability to meet billable hour requirements, the organization will endeavor to provide flexibility and support.
- Make this policy explicit and written, not just informal understanding
- Include examples of covered situations (childcare emergencies, elder care, medical appointments, mental health days)
- Specify process for requesting flexibility without excessive justification
- Ensure no negative career consequences for using this flexibility
Support Caregiving Responsibilities
- Provide paid parental leave for all types of families (birth, adoption, foster)
- Offer phased return-to-work programs after leave
- Provide backup childcare or eldercare services
- Allow flexibility for school events, medical appointments, etc.
- Create lactation rooms and support for nursing parents
- Recognize caregiving extends beyond young children (eldercare, disability support)
3. Protect Time for Non-Billable Activities
- Recognize that mentoring, business development, professional development, and community service are valuable
- Allocate time and credit for these activities
- Don’t penalize employees who invest in these areas
- Consider separate targets for billable vs. non-billable professional activities
4. Set annual minimum hour requirements based on the assumption that employees will take at least two weeks off during the course of the year.
Create and communicate a vacation policy and generate an organizational culture to support employees for taking allocated vacation time.
- Consider “use it or lose it” policies or mandatory minimum time off
- Address the practice of working during vacation (explicitly discourage)
- Leaders should model taking vacation and disconnecting
- Consider “blackout dates” when work is not permitted (similar to the Rejuvenation/Reflection weeks example)
- Track vacation usage and follow up with those not taking time off
5. Offer a range of flexible work options including, but not limited to:
- Remote working availability;
- Reduced work hours plan;
- Balanced hours plan;
- Sabbatical availability;
- Job sharing;
- Compressed schedules;
- On-ramping.
6. Develop policies that encourage lawyers and staff to curb email use outside of office hours and while on vacation.
- Consider implementing “email-free” time periods (e.g., after 7pm, before 7am, weekends)
- Use delayed send features so emails drafted after hours aren’t sent until morning
- Create expectations that emails sent after hours don’t require immediate response
- Consider email signature disclaimers about response time expectations
- Address the “emergency” exception – what truly requires after-hours contact?
- Share those policies with clients.
7. If it is within the organization’s business model, promote non-partner track promotional options.
8. Create transparent remote/flexible work policies and encourage their use.
- Ensure policies are actually used, not just available on paper
- Track utilization rates by demographics to identify barriers
- Address stigma associated with using flexible work arrangements
- Regularly review and update policies based on employee feedback
- Make clear that using flexible arrangements doesn’t impact advancement opportunities
9. Provide opportunities for face time without implicitly or explicitly penalizing those who engage in less face time.
Acknowledging that each person works differently from the next, there should be opportunities for regular check-ins and face time to allow colleagues who are seeking it an ability to connect/share knowledge.
In providing these opportunities, however, it is important not to penalize those employees who need less face time or choose not to engage in substantive face time. Opportunities for face time should always be an inclusive invitation, not an exclusive one.
- Define what “face time” means in hybrid/remote environments
- Address the equity implications (primary caregivers, commuters, introverts may have different needs)
- Ensure virtual participation is truly valued equally
- Be intentional about what needs to be in-person vs. virtual
- Consider “core hours” when everyone is available vs. flexible hours
10. Create and communicate a policy that protects lawyers from automatic termination for failing to meet minimum billable hour or other productivity requirements, including first time bar exam failure.
11. Consider a maximum cap on the number of billable hours for which lawyers can be rewarded or compensated in any given year.
- Specify what happens when attorneys exceed the cap (redistributed work, hiring needs)
- Address the cultural message this sends about sustainability
- Consider progressive caps (lower for junior attorneys)
- Include how this protects against burnout
12. Reexamine Billable Hour Requirements and Alternative Billing Models
- Conduct regular audits of whether billable hour targets are realistic and sustainable
- Consider reducing minimum requirements or creating tiered expectations
- Explore alternative billing arrangements (flat fee, value-based, subscription)
- Ensure billable hour expectations account for non-billable but essential work (training, mentoring, firm citizenship)
- Consider whether billable hours should be the primary metric of productivity
13. Create Boundaries Around Meetings
- Establish “no meeting” blocks or days to allow for focused work
- Set meeting length defaults (45 minutes instead of 1 hour)
- Require agendas and clear purposes for meetings
- Encourage declining meeting invitations when not essential
- Respect lunch hours and end-of-day boundaries
- Build in breaks between back-to-back meetings
Create “Right to Disconnect” Policies
- Establish clear expectations that attorneys can disconnect outside work hours
- Make it explicit that after-hours emails don’t require immediate response
- Consider “auto-delete” for emails sent during vacation
- Address client expectations about availability
- Create emergency protocols so true emergencies are handled without 24/7 availability being the norm
14. Address Financial Wellness
- Provide financial planning resources and education
- Offer student loan repayment assistance
- Provide transparency about compensation and advancement
- Address financial stress as a well-being issue
- Consider profit-sharing or bonus structures that reward sustainable performance
Real World Examples from Pledge Participants:
- We have a minimum of 4 weeks paid vacation, including weeks off the last week of August (Rejuvenation week) and December (Reflection week). [Not just attorneys, of which I am the only one, but the whole team].
- Schedule committee meetings and some of its social events, such as office-wide meals, well-being walks, speakers, and book review talks, during the day to be mindful of family and other obligations that employees have at the beginning and end of their workday. Further, scheduling daytime events promotes community building and social opportunities at times when there would be no expectation of alcohol. In planning evening events, we continue to de-emphasize drinking and emphasize healthy living and personal connection.
- Provide a flexible schedule that permits attorneys and legal staff to work from home two or three days per week.