Deloitte willing to talk to PwC staffers over jobs: Adam Powick

CEO Adam Powick says his firm is currently seeing approaches from PwC employees exploring their career options.

PwC’s 10,000 staff are under continued pressure from ongoing investigations from the involvement in the tax leak scandal. Picture:Wolfgang Rattay.

Accounting firm Deloitte is “happy to discuss” opportunities with PwC staffers reaching out over possible jobs, according to its chief executive, Adam Powick.

In an answer to questions from The Australian, Mr Powick said his firm was “seeing some initial approaches from people (from PwC) interested in exploring career options.”

“PwC have many talented and capable people and we are happy to discuss opportunities with them, particularly in areas of high client demand,” he said.

Deloitte currently has about 13,000 staff in Australia, including more than 1000 partners.

Other accounting firms contacted by the Australian this week, including KPMG and EY, said they did not want to comment on whether they were receiving approaches from PwC staffers. Mr Powick’s comments come as PwC’s 10,000 staff are under continued pressure from ongoing investigations from the involvement in the tax leak scandal with new chief executive, Singapore based PwC veteran, Kevin Burrowes, set to take over on July 17.

On Friday Labor Senator Deborah O’Neill has stepped up her attack on the embattled accounting firm, calling on them to name the global companies which they sought to help evade tax.

“Reports of the substantial underpayment of tax, are both deeply concerning and sadly unsurprising,” she said.

As part of a massive overhaul of its operations, more than 1750 staff and some 130 partners are expected to move over to a new firm, to be called Scyne, which is being set up as private equity firm Allegro completes the takeover of PwC’s government consulting business in a deal expected to be finalised by the end of August.

Separately, the firm has also announced that 70 partners would retiring from the firm this year, higher than the 60 who left last year. It also confirmed this week that another 47 “staff roles” had been made redundant.

Staff who have been working in PwC’s government consulting business have been told that they have no option to remain with the firm as PwC was getting out of the business. The pressure on the firm, and the fallout from the tax leak scandal, has been taking its toll on the firm’s staff who have been concerned about the future with the scandal coming at time when the economy is slowing.

Mr Burrowes announced a restructuring of the firm’s executive board this week, as well as the news that two of the firm’s most senior legal experts — long-time general counsel, Meredith Beattie, and Tony O’Malley, who was recently appointed to head up PwC Australia’s risk and ethics division — had announced their intention to retire. Ms Beattie’s departure is significant as she has been seen as a leader of the firm’s response to the tax leak scandal which arose from advice given by the firm to the Australian Taxation Office as part of its multinational tax crackdown.

In an email to staff this week, acting chief executive Kristin Stubbins, reminded them that PwC had a confidential hotline that they could access for counselling if they needed it.