I’m a lawyer, get me out of here!

Snake pits, eating bugs and even fish eyes, and that controversial jungle shower returned to our screens in ITV’s I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here, with Harry Redknapp ultimately crowned King this weekend.

While the TV show can prove a bit of escapism, or ‘avoidism’ if you can’t stand reality TV, the celebs screaming ‘get me out of here’ got us thinking about what most causes lawyers to want to escape their jobs and find a new role.

To find the answers, we took a sneak peek at job satisfaction trends from our Salary and Benefits Benchmarker 2019.

The Progression Pit 

whereas the celebs are plunged into pits of reptiles and creepy crawlies, it’s being pitted against peers for promotion and limited career opportunities that make most lawyers want to leave their jobs.

Around a fifth of legal professionals in 2018 highlighted this as the main reason for leaving their last position. They crave the opportunity and satisfaction to climb the career ladder and find competition with peers an uninspiring method of encouraging progression.

Glass ceilings prove more of a motivating factor than salary to seek a new job, with early findings from our 2019 survey suggesting this still ranks as the top reason for employees to switch firms.

Pay Down Under 

It’s not necessarily levels of salary that cause legal professionals to leave a firm, it’s an under-valued pay rise that’s more detrimental.

The pay rise isn't simply a financial reward and a means of a better lifestyle, it’s a barometer of how an employee’s work and place within the organisation is valued by the firm. If the increase is less than expected, they feel their contribution isn't properly recognised and that they are not important. This quickly erodes morale and job satisfaction, causing employees to look for a job where they feel they’ll earn their worth.

Out of the Comfort Zone 

Some of the celebs claim to do I’m a Celeb for the experience of the adrenaline-fuelled challenges and confronting their fears (we’re sure the six-figure pay is also quite appealing). Lawyers may not quite relish a Bush Tucker Trial, but they do value opportunities to be challenged. Many are well aware of complacency and detest it. They want to be stretched and welcome new and different experiences to hone their knowledge and learn new skills.

If they feel such opportunities are in short-supply and their role is becoming a repetitive cycle of the same work, they’ll seek new challenges in a new firm.

The Salary and Benefits Benchmarker 2019 is due to be published early next year. In the meantime, take a look at 2018’s results for further insights on career motivators and what drives employee satisfaction.