- Report: #210758
Complaint Review: Jenkens Gilchrist - Austin Texas
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Jenkens Gilchrist
Austin, Texas, U.S.A.
Phone:
512-456-8788
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Jenkens Gilchrist Austin Texas
The point isn't (a) whether it won an award or (b) whether Jenkens employs minorities. The main issue here is the gender problem. And I don't just mean the "numbers," the 1950s image of a 90% male group of lawyers being cheered on by adoring female support staff.
Jenkens is consciously conveying the image that they envision themselves as a football locker room, complete with the firm being run by a gruff-talking male football "coach" and the lawyers preparing for their legal work with a testosterone-addled, grunting "huddle."
The hiring market is heating up, and female law students/junior associates now have options. What is the video saying to women about their odds of fitting in, when this is the culture? What does the "leader as gruff football coach" say about their odds of making it into a leadership role?
I know J&G's answer will be, "that's ridiculous, we give equal opportunity to everyone, and we have women at the firm." And I see that your female associate statistics have increased from extremely poor (33.9%) to mildly close to acceptable (43.7%), though that easily could be a one-year blip; and while partner diversity always lags associate diversity a bit, I'm not convinced that jumping from 13 to 14% female partners is that impressive.
Basically, J&G is alienating a lot of women with an ad that says, "come to J&G -- it's just like a male-dominated football locker room." If you don't care about that, or don't believe me, consider that this likely would be discoverable in any gender discrimination suit the firm faces, and it doesn't look good. There are numerous employment discrimination cases in which this sort male-focused, male-dominated culture buttressed a woman's gender discrimination claim.
Liz
30341, Georgia
U.S.A.
Jenkens is consciously conveying the image that they envision themselves as a football locker room, complete with the firm being run by a gruff-talking male football "coach" and the lawyers preparing for their legal work with a testosterone-addled, grunting "huddle."
The hiring market is heating up, and female law students/junior associates now have options. What is the video saying to women about their odds of fitting in, when this is the culture? What does the "leader as gruff football coach" say about their odds of making it into a leadership role?
I know J&G's answer will be, "that's ridiculous, we give equal opportunity to everyone, and we have women at the firm." And I see that your female associate statistics have increased from extremely poor (33.9%) to mildly close to acceptable (43.7%), though that easily could be a one-year blip; and while partner diversity always lags associate diversity a bit, I'm not convinced that jumping from 13 to 14% female partners is that impressive.
Basically, J&G is alienating a lot of women with an ad that says, "come to J&G -- it's just like a male-dominated football locker room." If you don't care about that, or don't believe me, consider that this likely would be discoverable in any gender discrimination suit the firm faces, and it doesn't look good. There are numerous employment discrimination cases in which this sort male-focused, male-dominated culture buttressed a woman's gender discrimination claim.
Liz
30341, Georgia
U.S.A.
