It emerged this week that some Freshfields’ trainees learnt that they wouldn’t be offered jobs on qualification by picking up voicemails left by the firm.
As RollOnFriday reported last week, the firm phoned its trainees to let them know whether or not they’d been retained. A spokesman confirmed that despite repeated attempts HR was unable to get hold of all of them – so “in three or four cases” they were left voicemails saying that the news wasn’t good and they should get in touch asap.
The spokesman admitted that this was far from ideal, but said the firm wanted to convey the news as quickly as possible. He added that the trainees all had individual meetings after picking up their voicemails. None of which seems to have pacified the trainees concerned: as one insider said: “This obviously made people feel incredibly valued for their two years of hard work for a bunch of partners who were too gutless to deliver the news themselves”.
After news broke of the poor retention rate, Freshfields said that it was offering all the departing trainees a wodge of cash as a goodwill gesture. But it’s now transpired that it’s the princely sum of, err, £700. The firm confirmed that it was making a payment to the trainees but wouldn’t comment on the amount.
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As RollOnFriday reported last week, the firm phoned its trainees to let them know whether or not they’d been retained. A spokesman confirmed that despite repeated attempts HR was unable to get hold of all of them – so “in three or four cases” they were left voicemails saying that the news wasn’t good and they should get in touch asap.
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A voicemail yesterday |
The spokesman admitted that this was far from ideal, but said the firm wanted to convey the news as quickly as possible. He added that the trainees all had individual meetings after picking up their voicemails. None of which seems to have pacified the trainees concerned: as one insider said: “This obviously made people feel incredibly valued for their two years of hard work for a bunch of partners who were too gutless to deliver the news themselves”.
After news broke of the poor retention rate, Freshfields said that it was offering all the departing trainees a wodge of cash as a goodwill gesture. But it’s now transpired that it’s the princely sum of, err, £700. The firm confirmed that it was making a payment to the trainees but wouldn’t comment on the amount.