Sunday, December 04, 2005

Random Ravings of a White Collar Day Laborer

Ah yes!! It finally arrived. After decades of socio-economic decay and third world exploitation, it is finally here! Someone came up with the bright idea of bringing that very model of third world desperation and despair right here to the modern day law firm! International Monetary Fund meet your jolly-old American counter-part Sallie Mae. Who needs a sweatshop in Cambodia when you got several right here in mid-town Manhattan?

"The use of contract and temporary attorneys grew 11 percent last year, many markets are beginning to utilize the trend, two, three, four years ago, it wasn't as common; that growth came at the expense of attorneys in the survey's 'other' category, 10,749, which includes of counsel, senior counsel and staff attorneys."

Ah yes, how the partners love them. Why bill a client $250 an hour and have to pay an associate $75 an hour when you can bill a client $250 an hour and pay a temp $25 an hour to do the same work? Last year, one particular mid-town firm shocked the legal community when its profits per partner far outpaced that of its peers. What could explain this miraculous transformation? Temps, temps, temps! Don't think the other firms didn't take notice. Everyone is now clamoring in one unified voice to bring in the temps!

{all commentors post at the pleasure of Tom the Temp}

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ha! I spent most of 2003 in a white collar salt mines on Wall Street. I hope you do this long enough for it to become required reading for 3Ls and junior associates everywhere. People cried randomly, peopl getting fired for taking too many bathroom breaks(one woman put a curse on her cubicle-mate the day she was fired), excrement on the bathroom wall, no phone calls or email. Doc review definately is the dark underbelly of the profession. Good luck.

helpme123 said...

Ah, yes! Heard that one through the gravevine as well. The woman who put a hex on her project before being carried out screaming.

Tom the temp