Herbert Smith has expanded its benefits package with new measures to give its UK staff access to emergency care for children and elderly relatives.
The City firm has become one of the first UK law firms to offer a full subsidy for emergency care for dependants, through a new scheme introduced last month with benefits provider My Family Care.
The service gives all employees access to emergency childcare and elder care services, with employees able to book nannies, emergency elder carers, childminders and nursery places within walking distance of either the office or their home on as little as 30 minutes’ notice through My Family Care’s website.
Herbert Smith diversity head Carolyn Lee said the scheme was a response to calls from employees for greater flexibility.
She told Legal Week: “We have put in place an emergency care programme for people who have dependants. There is also the additional benefit of elder care cover. We are subsidising this scheme 100%. We did not offer anything this specific previously.”
Firms have been increasingly focused on work-life balance issues for associates in recent years. Other firms offering childcare benefits to staff include magic circle firms Allen & Overy and Linklaters, which introduced an emergency childcare service in 2006 to provide employees with subsidised nanny and nursery cover.
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