We’re just chock full of news about Deloitte Australia today. Earlier on, Adrienne poked fun at the firm’s ridiculous career break program. Then we come to find out that Deloitte is going to allow its partners to work there until they are frail and barely breathing—as long as they are making a meaningful contribution to the firm and aren’t drooling at their desk.
The Australian Financial Review reports:
Deloitte Australia is now open to allowing partners to remain beyond the firm’s unofficial retirement age of 62, according to new chief executive Richard Deutsch.
Mr. Deutsch, 51, said partnership was about focus and energy, not age, and he expected the firm would begin to have partners over 62. At present the firm has no partners over this age.
I guess this is big news Down Under because the other Big 4 firms want their partners to retire by the time they reach 60—so they can go to Australian Rules Football matches and drink Foster’s on the beach, probably—despite legal experts saying this is “unlawful age discrimination.”
According to the article, KPMG “will continue to have a clause in its contracts, headlined ‘Voluntary Age Retirement,’ that outlines that the firm expects a partner to retire when they reach 58 years of age unless the CEO decides otherwise.”
Partner contracts at EY “specify ‘a partner shall retire on his normal retirement date,’ which it defines as age 60, a clause the firm has previously said it will not change.” And while PwC doesn’t have a mandatory retirement age, “partners say they expect to retire at 55,” according to AFR.
But not Deloitte. No, no, no. Deutsch said he has no problem at all with partners working past 62, as long as they are “focused and energetic” and are “making a meaningful contribution.”
And why not? As long as they can put a coherent thought together and can count to 10, the firm’s partners should hold onto that six-figure salary as long as possible.
Lord knows I’m going to be working until I’m 85 because I’m not earning—and probably never will—a six-figure salary. You’ll find me working as a greeter in the Walmart Supercenter in Naperville, Ill. in 35 years. Come say hi.
