Downsizing on Bay Street

By: John Magyar · July 3, 2009 · Filed Under Law Career · 5 Comments

From the Globe and Mail: Oslers cuts 23 support staff

The title of the article is a bit misleading. Osler is one of several firms mentioned. This is a sign of the times and an unfortunate consequences of something that is inevitable. Those of Judeo-Christian heritage will recall that in the Old Testament, Joseph dreamt of seven skinny cows eating seven fatted cows. The boom-bust cycle has been with us for that long. It is as old as the human race.

Those of us who have lived through previous recessions know that this too will pass, but my heart goes out to all of the young people graduating. It is painful to finish school with a mountain of debt, eager to work to pay it off and start building for the future only to find that there isn’t any work.

In my opinion, young people face more difficulties finding employment than the older among us during tough times. After all, if a company has laid off experienced workers, it will higher them back before it will invest in training someone new. What’s worse, it takes years for the backlog of experienced workers to be reclaimed as the economy recovers.

That being said, I have no doubt that the legal profession will suffer less than most other sectors. But the rising tide lifts all boats … and the falling tide lowers them all too.

Comments

5 Responses to “Downsizing on Bay Street”

Vitali Berditchevski on July 3rd, 2009 11:30 am

“After all, if a company has laid off experienced workers, it will higher them back before it will invest in training someone new.”

I am not entirely sure about this. Without referencing the legal field specifically, I will say that a new graduate is almost always cheaper for the company than someone with a lot of experience. New grads are paid less and they tend to be available to work more hours (due to fewer familial obligations), which often outstrips the expense of training them. Whether or not I am correct remains to be seen.
Lisa Macklem on July 4th, 2009 10:52 am

As a mature (read very mature) student, I find our current legal employment climate disturbing – though not unexpected. My concern as a mature student is that while I was able to draw on savings to pay my tuition, those are savings that still need to be replenished. As a mature student, my career will be half or less than half as long as most of my fellow graduates. Granted, coming to a new career this late in life, I did not expect to achieve the same economic success as my fellow graduates and my desire was for a rewarding career. This too is something that is in jeopardy. I’m not getting any younger and I feel that my window of opportunity is shrinking – and it’s been my experience so far, that my previous job experiences are not of particular interest to potential employers.
Omar Ha-Redeye on July 5th, 2009 3:20 am

Lisa, as the outgoing President of the Mature Students Club at UWO, this issue is frequently raised.

My response is that clients will be interested in your knowledge and expertise prior to law. And the clients matter more than any hiring committee in any law firm.

Get the clients, and you can go wherever you want. And you might find that the opportunities that come with the ability to independently attract and retain business are quite different than those that do not.

Your opportunities are what you make of it. And you have more ability to make it than those without your background.
John Magyar on July 5th, 2009 6:35 am

I would like to address the first two comments. Like you, Mr. Berditchevski, I have no work experience in Law and draw my understandings from other areas. I have been both a supervisor and business-owner, and in both situations I found new employees to be a burden on an organization. Despite the lower pay, they produce very little value until they are up to speed. Getting them up to speed requires the oversight of experienced employees which takes them away from value-producing activities. I always preferred to hire people with direct experience because the learning curve was so much shorter. This is anecdotal — I am not a management guru. But I believe this to be true.

And Lisa, I share your concerns. It is a challenging marketplace for all of us. We, the mature candidates, are starting from scratch in the legal profession and have the same “burden factor” as our younger peers. We are all novices. However recessions come and then go. Law is a specialized niche for which there is a significant demand in our society, and I am confident that all of us can find articling positions though perhaps not in the location or area of practice that we would prefer. We are bright and motivated, we have the fundamental character traits necessary to succeed. Regrettably we will also need patience and persistence to get through these temporary tough times. But it is temporary.

It is important to remain positive and cooperative as well. There is a tendency among the fearful to adopt a siege mentality and this can lead to socially destructive behaviour. We might be competing with each other today … and we might be working as a team tomorrow. We’re all in this together.
Lisa Macklem on July 8th, 2009 1:05 am

I agree Omar and John. Opportunities are made through cooperation – and I think that that is one thing that one learns most often through experience.

At the end of the day, I just want the opportunity to demonstrate what I can do, be part of a stimulating and productive team, and do the best possible job for my clients.

And let’s face it, you have to be possessed of some kind of wacky optimism to be starting a new career later in life. I wouldn’t be in law school if I didn’t like challenging myself and exploring new frontiers.