Talent wars | Firm offers £150k starting salaries in fight for staff

There’s never been a better time for employees with in-demand skills to look for a job. Recruitment firm Robert Walters told the BBC that professionals moving jobs as part of the ‘Great Resignation’ are getting an average of a 15% pay rise as a result - and the company is currently placing graduates into law firms on starting salaries of as much as £150,000.

The UK’s job vacancies have hit record levels – there were 1.21 million vacant jobs in the quarter ending November 2021. The post-COVID reopening of the economy, plus Brexit and the ‘Great Resignation’, has led to a scramble for talent that has seen some firms putting up salaries to attract employees

However, Alan Bannatyne, Chief Financial Officer at Robert Walters, told the BBC that there were “winners and losers” in the current post-COVID workplace. "Bricks-and-mortar retailers and airlines have really struggled so will probably not be paying bonuses or giving pay rises," he told the BBC. "So they become a hunting ground for other high growth businesses, such as online retailers, anything to do with technology and digital, and manufacturers of household goods."

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Law firms, in particular, are experiencing a talent shortage – the BBC reports that vacancies for London-based associates rose by over 130% between January and November last year. The sector is notorious for its long working hours and highly competitive environment, with many lawyers suffering from burnout. It’s perhaps not surprising that it’s been strongly affected by the ‘Great Resignation’, which has been driven in no small part by a desire for a better work-life balance from professionals.