OPIA Blog

This Washington Post article reveals some of the methods being used by big-time employers to save on energy costs and save on expenses.From Chrysler to Utah’s state government, employers are now trying to find new strategies to go greener, reduce business costs and appeal to newer workers.

According to the article, the effort is gaining momentum across the country. “This month, Utah became the first state in the country to take the leap, shifting most of its 17,000 state employees to a mandatory 10-hour-a-day, four-day workweek and closing most state offices on Fridays. Hawaii is piloting a similar experiment with about 100 state workers, and officials in Fairfax County are studying whether such an arrangement would work for them. Even officials in governments that are not ready to move to a four-day week, such as those in Michigan and West Virginia, say they might allow more workers to do so or to work other alternative schedules to help them save money and reduce commuting stress.

After taking other steps to reduce energy consumption, car giant Chrysler is pondering whether to shift about a dozen of its manufacturing facilities and several of its parts units to 10-hour, four-day workweeks. The change, which must be negotiated with unions, could affect more than 10,000 workers. Because it could mean plants would be shuttered three days instead of two, it could save the company millions in utility costs, spokesman Ed Saenz said.”

Find the full story here.

A new student loan repayment program is now awaiting approval from President Bush before it goes into effect. The proposal, which is contained in the Higher Education Act, is part of an effort to make higher education more affordable an accessible.

Under the terms of the proposal, the attorney general will assume the obligation to repay the student loans of attorneys who commit to spending at least three years as criminal prosecutors at the state or local level, or as public defenders in criminal cases at all levels of government. The amount of the grant for each student is capped at $10,000 per year or $60,000 total. Repayment benefits will also be given on a preferential basis to those who have the least ability to repay their loans.

For more on this story, click here.

A report released last week by the Department of Justice’s inspector general and internal ethics office revealed the widespread politicization of hiring practices within the agency. During the tenures of both Attorney Generals John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzalez, highly qualified, left-leaning applicants for important civil service positions were passed over in favor of less competent conservative applicants. The practice violated basic Civil Service laws, which forbids the use of political considerations in hiring decisions. Senior aides to the Attorney General, notably Monica Goodling, had illegally used political criteria, including candidates’ stances on “god, guns + gays,” to weed out those with liberal ideologies.

For more on the story, click here. The complete report is also available at the OPIA office in Pound 329.

As a recent College graduate remarked in the New York Times, “We came to Harvard as freshmen to change the world, and we’re leaving to become investment bankers - why is this?” His question addresses the growing trend in which students from top schools are being funneled into high-paying corporate jobs and away from other fields, especially public service.

In response to students’ increasingly myopic focus on financial security, schools are starting to place a greater emphasis on alternate career paths. Some, including Harvard, have started to expand their public service fellowships and internships. In her address to seniors during commencement week, Dean Faust urged students to look for measures of success beyond financial compensation. This same call to public service has been echoed by Barack Obama, who warned Wellesley graduates last month that the pursuit of narrow self-interest betrays a “poverty of ambition.”

Even so, the appeal of Wall Street salaries and prestige remains strong, and applying to corporate jobs is still the automatic option for many students. They continue struggling to balance real-world concerns with high-minded ideals. To read more, click here.

While law schools continue to provide rigorous academic and intellectual training, some are starting to supplement this with more practical instruction. Several law schools have started Visiting Assistant Professorship programs in which practicing attorneys join as full-time faculty. By giving these attorneys a chance to concentrate on their scholarship and teaching, law schools hope to mentor promising newcomers with private sector, government and nonprofit experience and introduce them to academia.

Students also stand to benefit from VAP programs. Akiba Coviz, director of academic affairs at Harvard Law School explains, “Anytime someone has practiced out in the world it brings an additional level of value to the students.” These visiting professors are able to offer real-world insights and instruction in practical skills that can be lacking in a traditional legal education. For more on this story, click here.

With the provisional accreditation of two new North Carolina institutions last week, the United States became the first country in the world to host 200 law schools. Quantity, however, does not necessarily produce quality, explained a recent AP article. The proliferation of law schools has resulted in a surplus of lawyers, many of whom are having an increasingly difficult time finding work. This has led to the rise of “contract attorneys” – essentially lawyers working temp jobs at modest hourly rates. In addition to poor working conditions and the lack of job security, this temp work usually consists of monotonous tasks outsourced by law firms.

Lured by the promise of high earning potential and guarantees of employment, many students enroll in law school without doing adequate research. Universities, for their part, have also been somewhat disingenuous in their efforts to establish law schools and attract students. Because law schools feature big class sizes and small financial aid packages, they are a cost-effective and even lucrative option for many schools. Law school rankings have also had a damaging effect on the legal education system, as schools often exaggerate, underreport, or otherwise skew statistics to make their graduates seem more financially successful. To read more on this topic, click here.

For a minority of law school graduates, the legal profession isn’t quite what they’re looking for. Those such as Jason Luros graduate from law school and simply find more available work in fields such as financial planning. Others, however, know the intrinsic value of an advanced degree in law when working with corporate legal departments and getting ahead in their various businesses. Molly Claflin uses her legal education as a stepping stone into politics. Utilizing both the connections she has made and her new-found skills, she has avoided the big-firm jobs in favor of a working for lower-pay but very rewarding position on the Barack Obama campaign.

The idea is that law degrees can be used for a variety of purposes having nothing to do with law and for many graduates, this is an appealing notion. Rachel Knight wants to further her own goals of helping the poor through legal means but at the same time realizes the pressures of having to pay off student loans. As she sees it:

Work in a firm for three years, pay all your debts, then go do what you want. … We’re our own biggest obstacles.

As frustration with the legal profession grows, many young associates are becoming increasingly worn out. In response, many firms have started to change the way their businesses operates. Moving away from the classic model of billable hours, firms have introduced reduced annual hour quotas, adjustable salary and benefits packages dependent on merit rather than seniority and other innovations. Industry watcher and consultant Deborah Epstein Henry - founder of Flex-Time Lawyers - calls this phenomenon a “movement,” even if firms themselves are reluctant to see it as such. New plans furthermore call for schedules which allow associates to seek partnership at varying rates in order to prioritize family or leisure time, as well as extended leave for both new fathers and mothers. You can find out more from this New York Times article.

Tania Shah is one of a growing number of individuals hired by law firms to handle unified efforts at diversity and inclusion, environmental sustainability, pro bono work and charitable giving, among other initiatives. Hired in 2007 by Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman as Director of Corporate Social Responsibility, Shah has a role previously only seen in European law firms. While partly serving as marketing to attract goodwill and clients, the addition of committees aimed solely at public service at many private firms is a chance to better organize their growing role in such work. There is, of course, another element, in that firms are meeting the demands of clients who want to know that they are working with socially responsible firms they cab be “proud of.” Still, it shows the increasing importance of such social programs and their impact on the private legal sector.

A Washington Post article by Derrick Dortch offers advice to those seeking to go from a legal career in the federal government to the private sector. Dortch cautions to “look before you leap” and weigh the costs and benefits of such a move including loss of federal retirement benefits and potential job security. However, while transitions present difficulties, financial incentives clearly exist, especially for those lawyers involved with higher levels of government work which require security clearances; holding such an advantage could make you more “marketable” to government contractors. Read more here.