Many people know April 1 as a day for making and playing practical jokes. What you might not know is that April 1 isn’t just for “fools,” it’s also a day for employees: International Fun at Work Day.
All kidding aside (the work you do is no laughing matter), you work hard and put in long hours — disproving the myth that corporate counsel have found the secret to work-life balance. We still have fun, and that’s a perk of the job. But business always comes first.
Employment related issues are not just the concern of the company’s Human Resources department. The legal department plays a crucial role, especially in areas concerning compliance with laws that change frequently. One such issue of concern for US general counsel is the implications of the recent US Supreme Court’s Clark decision. This decision, and what in-house need to know, is explored in this issue of the Docket, along with what happens when employment ends in Asian jurisdictions. When it comes to termination entitlements and claims in this region of the world, the level of regulation varies. The cover story delves into and compares practices in Singapore, People’s Republic of China and Indonesia.
Other articles focus on employment agreements (maybe boilerplate isn’t the way to go) and building a diverse legal team. When it comes to diversity, it’s not enough to check off a few boxes: You have to recruit the best and the brightest lawyers to your team, who also represent the diverse communities in which your company does business. Issues concerning diversity are of great interest and concern to me, and ACC is committed to promoting and increasing the diversity of the legal profession. Therefore, we provide resources to assist members with identifying best practices and initiatives to promote a truly inclusive in-house legal department. In addition to these resources, ACC has developed programs like its partnership with Street Law, and many ACC chapters, including the Greater Philadelphia Delaware Valley Chapter and the Chicago Chapter, host diversity summer internship programs each year. Initiatives like these allow an emerging crop of talented students to meet in-house counsel.
If you know of a legal department that is getting diversity right, nominate them for ACC’s Matthew J. Whitehead, II Diversity Award. The award recognizes outstanding achievement in creating programs to increase awareness and commitment to corporate legal diversity, as well as improvements in the areas of employment, retention, advancement and career growth opportunities for diverse lawyers.
When it comes to the workplace, employees look to HR to answer their questions, and often HR looks to you. ACC is here with the resources you need to be ready for any question that comes your way — even what to do on International Fun at Work Day. You may not have work-life balance down to a science (there’s also an article on this elusive topic using data from the 2014 ACC Global Work-Life Balance Report), but everyone knows that lawyers know how to party.
