Fuel prices a growing concern for locums
19 June 2008 by Alasdair Campbell
Sellick Partnership’s legal division are increasingly listening to the concerns of professional locums who are feeling the ‘pinch’ at the pumps. For the vast majority of locum solicitors who travel by car, the huge hike in fuel prices means that many are reviewing their charge-out rates for locum assignments.
High oil prices breaking through the $125 per barrel mark have fuelled a near record rise in petrol prices in the past month and diesel prices have risen by their highest margin this century. Nationally, petrol prices rose 5p in May to 113.9p per litre, whilst diesel has risen by 7p per litre to 124.9p per litre on average.
Locum solicitors and fee earners realise that flexibility in terms of location is an essential part of working on a locum basis, some choosing to relocate for the duration of the assignment. People who work locum assignments can tend to travel further to their place of work thus meaning increased overheads in terms of travel/accommodation.
For those who travel by car, the recent sharp rise in fuel prices has meant that assignment overheads have significantly increased and there is now no doubt that the price of fuel now plays a major part in the locum market. For candidates who were prepared to travel further afield and relocate, this is now a much less attractive proposition than before.
So how have Sellick Partnership reacted to the hike in fuel costs? The rise of the home working solution.
Sellick have specialised in the legal locum market now for a number of years and during that time we have developed solid relationships with both Public Sector organisations and Private Practice law firms. Our expertise has helped us in looking for the best solutions and alternatives to help locums cope with the increase in assignment overheads.
The obvious solution is to increase the hourly charge-out rate in order to factor in these extra expenses. The strong relationships we hold with our clients has allowed us to negotiate higher hourly rates and we have witnessed a steady increase in candidate rates since the turn of the year. However, an increased rate is not always possible due to budgetary constraints and the current economic climate has affected our clients as well as candidates, in the marketplace. We therefore need to look for alternatives as we have a duty to get the best possible deal for clients and candidates alike.
One major development has been the increase in the number of locums we successfully negotiate a home working solution for. This obviously nullifies any overheads in terms of fuel costs, public transport costs and accommodation. This can work very well for some assignments and would perhaps require attending the office once or twice a week for client meetings. Another way in which we can assist is looking at alternative and cheaper modes of transport, and we have a dedicated resourcer who will be more than happy to help with this.