I write in response to your recent article concerning soaring in-house pay and candidate shortages (see [2006] Gazette, 16 March, 31).


Perhaps one reason is the high percentage of women lawyers now in the profession. As long as employers do not respond to the needs of working mothers who comprise a large part of the work-force, they will find it harder and harder to fill posts, and have to pay more.


I am a dual US/UK-qualified lawyer, with 15 years top-class commercial in-house and private practice experience, bilingual, with a Masters degree in French law. Since having children, I have worked on a locum basis, as I could not meet the demands of full-time, office-based employment without round-the-clock childcare.


Locum rates are often unattractive given that agencies tend to take a third of the hourly rate in commission. So employers using locums are generally disappointed with the quality of candidates. And locums are not happy with a rate that does not reflect their costs, or rates offered to comparable professionals.


Penny Osborne, Shrewsbury, Shropshire