Local Authority Paralegals
Trying to answer your questions.
LOCAL AUTHORITY PARALEGALS
We have been contacted by more Paralegals who have been the victims of re-organisation by Local Authorities and find themselves classed not as Paralegals but as Administrators, even though they are still expected to do the same legal workload. Even more of a concern is the fact that their salary grades have dropped and in some cases this has meant a loss of up to £2000 pa.
We have investigated the position and understand that all Local Authorities in Scotland have taken part in a project for Single Status/Job Evaluation. The issue we have is that they are not acknowledging the role of Paralegals and therefore in their view this grade does not exist. Once regulation and registration comes into effect in 2008 how are they going to manage this-if they require to register their Paralegals to confirm they meet the required standards to do the work, they can hardly refuse to recognise the role? Administrators cannot be registered as Paralegals!
We understand that while some Solicitors within Local Authority Legal teams have every sympathy with the predicament of their Paralegals they are not in a position to influence these decisions. We also understand that most Unions have signed up to the Single Status deal as they considered this was in the best interests of the majority of their Members, and therefore even if Paralegals are Union Members they will not have support from them.
At the end of the day, it would appear to be the case that you either accept your role as a Paralegal will not be recognised nor rewarded by a Local Authority employer (nor will you have the opportunity to become a Registered Paralegal), or seek employment elsewhere. There is a demand for experienced Paralegals (see our Situations Vacant pages on the website) and therefore the option to move on. Perhaps if more Local Authority Paralegals start to do this then it will focus the minds of those who made this short sighted decision in the first place!
If you do work for a Local Authority and find yourself in this position then our Annual Conference on the 19th April will give you the opportunity to meet with others facing this situation and to exchange information on any possible solutions as well as discussing it with your Committee.