An Allen & Overy associate has been hospitalised with exhaustion due to overwork.
Sources told RollOnFriday that junior lawyers in the firm's Dubai office have regularly been working 18-20 hour days, seven days a week. One insider said a partner's "refusal to hire adequate resources" was responsible, and revealed that an associate had been taken to hospital suffering from exhaustion and stress.
According to an insider, staff have no protection under the local labour laws so HR are unable to act. An Allen & Overy spokeswoman told RollOnFriday, "we have ensured that this individual has been looked after and is recovering. We take the wellbeing of our people very seriously, including monitoring the impact of workloads”.
It is not the first time. Back in 2011, an associate at the London office was taken to hospital after collapsing during a deal. But A&O is surely not alone in pushing its lawyers to the max and then to A&E. If you've got an example, write in.
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Sources told RollOnFriday that junior lawyers in the firm's Dubai office have regularly been working 18-20 hour days, seven days a week. One insider said a partner's "refusal to hire adequate resources" was responsible, and revealed that an associate had been taken to hospital suffering from exhaustion and stress.
"I came as soon as I heard. It's terrible. Wake her up, she hasn't answered my emails." |
According to an insider, staff have no protection under the local labour laws so HR are unable to act. An Allen & Overy spokeswoman told RollOnFriday, "we have ensured that this individual has been looked after and is recovering. We take the wellbeing of our people very seriously, including monitoring the impact of workloads”.
It is not the first time. Back in 2011, an associate at the London office was taken to hospital after collapsing during a deal. But A&O is surely not alone in pushing its lawyers to the max and then to A&E. If you've got an example, write in.
Hi. Please rate your firm's work/life balance, and six other factors, in the RollOnFriday Firm of the Year 2018 Survey. Thank you. |
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Coming from the HR spokeswoman......
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What? Why would a lack of local HR laws this stop A&O acting as a firm to protect A&O's employees from A&O's own callous partners who are working them into the ground?
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Anyhow, clearly, I hope the associate makes a full recovery.
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I'm not referring to A&O in particular, but to several law firms (and to many departments within them).
When a junior miner collapses you hire another one, and in the meantime the mine worked at 120% capacity. Does this work? Apparently so. Also ask IBDs for reference.
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each and any normal human being who works or has ever worked at an MC/Big Law firm applauds you
and if they don't, it's because they have no soul
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This statement is made on behalf of Allen & Overy LLP, its wholly owned subsidiaries, Allen & Overy Service Company Ltd (together, the Firm) pursuant to section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the Act) (the Statement).
The Statement was approved by the Board of Allen & Overy LLP on behalf of the Firm on 5 October 2017. It was reviewed and approved by each of the individual entities comprising the Firm which has
obligations under the Act.
The Firm takes its obligations in relation to the identi cation, reporting and prevention of slavery and human trafficking very seriously and has a zero tolerance approach to all abuses of human rights. As a responsible business, the Firm is committed to taking appropriate steps to ensure that slavery and human trafficking does not occur within and part of its own business or any of its supply chains. The Firm is committed to upholding and promoting human rights through the way the Firm conducts its business, including its programme of charitable and pro bono work that supports many human rights initiatives.
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Um....A&Os HR needs to take a look at local law before making such blatantly untrue allegations. UAE Labour Law prescribes maximum working hours. In any event, A&O is not a regulator being asked to apply the law. This is a partner in its firm that they are being asked to reign in. They choose not to.
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