The folks at Robert Half Legal did a survey of 300 attorneys among the largest law firms and corporations in the United States and Canada. All respondents had at least three years of experience in the legal field.
Apparently, lawyers were asked, “If you could change one aspect of your job as a lawyer, which one of the following would it be?” an article says the responses were as follows:
| Decreased job stress | 31% | |
| Less hours at work or more personal time | 30% | |
| Accelerated career growth | 14% | |
| Greater professional autonomy | 5% | |
| Increased on-the-job training | 3% | |
| Higher salaries/compensation | 2% | |
| Other | 5% | |
| Nothing | 8% | |
| Don’t know | 2% | |
| 100% |
One of Robert Half Legal’s conclusions after reviewing the survey: "When it comes to retaining top legal talent, less stress and fewer hours on the job may matter more than compensation."
OK – that is probably true. What would be much more helpful is to know what amount of pay decrease lawyers willing to accept to get less stress and more free time. For example, 30% less pay for 30% less work? No employer in its right mind would accept that deal under ordinary circumstances.