More London firms are reporting difficulties hiring staff if they fail to offer the option to work remotely, as City law firms try both carrot and stick to get young lawyers into the office.

It was reported this week that magic circle firm A&O Shearman warned junior lawyers that they could lose out on bonuses if they failed to meet an office attendance requirement. The Times reported that bonuses could be withheld from junior lawyers who did not attend the office for at least 60% of a standard working week.

But a new survey has suggested London employers are increasingly reporting that failing to offer hybrid wworking options is a barrier to recruitment.

BusinessLDN - which represents more than 170 of London employers and counts Linklaters and Pinsent Masons among its members - polled more than 1,000 London firms for its survey and found 82% are running with vacancies. 

Of those surveyed, 45% said a lack of flexibility or hybrid working on offer was among the biggest drivers of recruitment challenges for their business, up from 42% last year and 37% in 2023.

Firms were also increasingly saying their businesses were lacking basic digital skills (35%) and cross-cutting transferable skills, such as negotiation and resilience (44%).

There is an ongoing war for talent in the City at the moment, with an arms race of soaring NQ pay, particularly among US firms based in London. Many newly qualified solicitors in US and magic circle firms now earn more than district judges. Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher lead the way with £180,000.

But firms are also trying to prise junior staff away from remote working, with US firm Sullivan & Cromwell having reportedly told staff to return to the office for a full five-day week and Paul Weiss, also a US firm, instating a mandatory four-day week in the office as a minimum.

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