Sydney firm scraps billable hours
A Sydney-based law firm is scrapping billable hours in favour of packaged retainers in order to better suit client demands.Workplace law firm People and Culture Strategies (PCS) has decided to
A Sydney-based law firm is scrapping billable hours in favour of packaged retainers in order to better suit client demands.
Workplace law firm People and Culture Strategies (PCS) has decided to move away from billable hours and instead offer tailored packages that allow clients to use their services without worrying about the clock ticking.
"In-house legal counsel and HR directors now have an uncomplicated way of complementing their skill set with ours," said managing director Joydeep Hor.
"It's what I call affordable quality and I believe clients in the workplace space have been crying out for this for years."
The PCS partnership packages range from $900 a month for an SME with less than 50 employees to $2,900 a month for those with 50-200 employees and $8,900 a month for 200-500 employees.
"If one took the value of these packages on an hourly rate, the costs would generally be 50 per cent more than the current value of the package," said Hor.
While the content of the packages is tailored for the size of each organisation and their workplace requirements, training also forms an important part of each package.
"Whether it is an SME or a large corporate, our training is critical because it helps up-skill these businesses in key areas that have a long-term, and at times, immediate impact on the business. These include modules such as enterprise bargaining, hiring and firing as well as behaviour and culture," said Hor.
"From experience, if we train some of the key people in the organisation in these critical areas, it helps save the business costs, time and effort in the long run."
Other things included in the monthly partnership packages include things like annual reviews of employment contracts, the creation of template policies, representation in dismissal proceedings and other employee litigation, and participation in monthly PCS webinars on topics such as parental leave, OH&S, good faith bargaining, performance management, restraint and confidential information, and redundancy and retrenchment services.
All telephone, fax, postage and copying costs are included in the package price.