Stephenson Harwood will cut staff wages by 20% if they choose to work from home full-time.

Those who agree will attend the office once every month, with their travel and accommodation expenses paid by the firm.

Stephenson Harwood said all other staff can choose to work remotely for up to two days per week and says it believes this policy works well for its employees.

The firm recruited lawyers outside of London during the pandemic – on different salaries from London staff – and now offers the full-time remote working opportunities to other staff.

A spokesperson for the firm said: “For resourcing reasons during the pandemic, we recruited lawyers who weren’t based in London, but lived elsewhere in the UK. The packages we offered were different from what we offer our people in London. They’re fully remote and are not expected to regularly attend the office. If they are needed in the office, we cover their travel and accommodation expenses.

“Recently we’ve opened the option to existing members of staff, so anyone interested in taking advantage of the additional flexibility offered by the package can have a conversation about whether it can work for their role.”