Eckert Seamans, which in May laid off 119 temporary attorneys targeted 119 temporary attorneys at its Pittsburgh document coding center for layoffs, has concluded the layoffs, with 90 affected.
Sixty attorneys still work at the center. The firm hopes to rehire some of those let go when the economy picks up.
Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC is a national full-service law firm based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with two offices located in the Pittsburgh area and eight other offices located throughout the eastern United States.
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Get the story right. They did not lay off 119 in May and another 90 in June. In fact, it’s not a layoff when a temporary contract attorney’s contract is up. No, that’s called fulfilling your purpose and completing your task. 90 contract attorneys did not have their contracts renewed. That’s 29 less than expected. Quit trying to make a story out of nothing.
TOO many people are getting laid off its sad.They get laid off and they dont have a job! Well at least they are hoping to hire some of them back. =)
Yeah, it’s very clever to hire people “on contract” so you don’t have to provide benefits, and when you get rid of them it’s not a “layoff.”
Man, that’s ashame when an attorney has to take a temporary job much less get laid off from one (or not have your contract renewed). This is a terrible sign of the times. I remember about 12 years ago when there would be four full pages of attorney job postings in the NJ Law Journal. Today, there’s only half of one page! I do agree, however, with the cuts in the starting salaries of first-year associates at the “big” firms, if they’re even hiring first years these days. I never understood the concept of giving a first-year associate with no legal experience whatsover (ok, maybe a judicial clerkship) and no license to practice law $150,000 a year to start with a firm. Even if the jobs were plentiful today, you still need to earn your way to the top, in my opinion. You shouldn’t be handed the keys to the kingdom just because you were on Law Review. Try bringing in some business first before you get “paid”.
I like how you post the comments but fail to correct the story. 90 contract attorneys did not have their contracts renewed because their tasks were completed, not 209. Get it right!
8:22 reply got it right. 90 contract attorneys’ contracts ended. Was pretty clear in all news accounts. Contract work is what it is, not a sign of the times. There have always been contract attorneys to do the grunt work for massive cases. They work according to their contracts and keep going. Eckert said they’re pushing for more new contracts. I’m sure they are. They make more money when they have more attorneys working. This blog is terribly misleading. This firm has actually added more permanent attorneys and grown in that way this year, while other firms are cutting salaries and permanent lawyers.
Eckert Siemen’s latest ad calls for more contract work, but are not hiring back. They want paralegals and non-barred attorneys so they can pay them even less.