ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ

Good workplace culture key to improving lawyers' well-being

A of Australian lawyers shows that workplace culture is critical to improving their well-being, according to researchers from The Australian National University (ANU) and the University of Melbourne.

The researchers recommend the introduction of more flexible working arrangements, improved management of lawyer well-being by firms, and greater understanding of the specific well-being needs of both junior lawyers and those managing them.

The survey of 1,900 lawyers across Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia was conducted by a research team including principal investigator Emerita Professor Vivien Holmes from ANU and Professor Julian Webb from Melbourne Law School.

Around half of the lawyers surveyed believe the culture of their workplace has a negative effect on their well-being. The survey also found that 18% of participants worked in organizations with a "poor" culture, characterized by poor relationships with colleagues, incivility, self-interest, and pressure to cut corners and bend rules.

Meantime, across all law firms surveyed, junior lawyers and senior lawyers with management responsibilities reported higher than average levels of psychological distress.

"Our study identifies a clear relationship between workplace culture, well-being and career intentions, with a third of participants reporting that they want to quit their firm, and 1 in 10 planning to leave the profession within a year," Emerita Professor Holmes said.

"For those planning to leave the sector, high workloads and a poor balance between perceived effort and reward were a serious problem."

Professor Webb added, "We found poor culture was statistically associated with higher psychological distress, workplace incivility, and a lack of effective well-being support services such as flexible working arrangements, better workload management, and tailored counseling or employee assistance programs."

Importantly, there were also positive findings.

"Nearly half of legal workplaces had a positive culture with good well-being supports, stronger relationships and healthier and happier staff," Professor Webb said.

Professor Holmes concluded, "We were able to identify the foundations for good workplace culture in having supportive colleagues and good management, practical and flexible work arrangements, and a positive focus on the quality of work. These factors have shaped our recommendations to the profession."