King & Wood Mallesons unveils roster structure of hybrid working

Law firm King & Wood Mallesons is set to bring in a roster system of hybrid working to give employees structure to their work life.

As we move into a post-pandemic world, questions are surfacing around what the future of work will look like.

But KWM is keen to offer certainty and routine for employees and its clients, the AFR reported.

Chief executive partner (Australia), Berkeley Cox, told the publication: "We vested control with the teams to come up with a plan that involves agreeing for instance, how many days a week people want to come in.

"We didn't want to be prescriptive about it has to be two days or has to be one day, we want to let them decide."

Read more: Tech HR head shares return to work plans

The new rostering system is set to come into force from Monday in all offices, except for Melbourne.

KWM has also brought in changes relating to its young employees, removing billable hours targets for graduates.

Cox said the focus is now on the amount of time graduates spend on training, encouraging them to learn new tools and ways of working.

New technology has made online learning more accessible and Cox has been impressed by the number of graduates taking up the opportunity to log training hours.

From full-time flexibility to a hybrid model of part home, part office, many businesses across Australia are in the process of deciding what their future of work looks like.

Read more: 250,000 staff told to go back to office

Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently said that now the curve of new infections has been flattened, it’s vital to get Australians back into work.

But chief medical officer Brendan Murphy stressed the need for a cautious approach to bringing employees into to the workplace.

“We don’t want everybody crowding on public transport at the same time,” Murphy said.

“We don’t want everyone crowding in the lifts at the beginning of the day and the end of the day.”