PwC Tries to Lure in Recruits Who, Like, Don’t Want to Be Held Down by the Man, Man

So you did alright in high school, graduated from a decent college accounting program, and possibly even tackled a Masters to ensure you stood out from all the other blue shirts vying for Big 4 internships. What’s next for you? Well, putting in a few hours at PwC between your Prime Now delivery gig if PwC has anything to say about it.

Calling it their Flexible Talent Network, PwC aims to recruit the best and brightest who may not be cut out for the 9-to-5 grind. Finally, insomniac drunks like myself have a chance to get ahead in the world.

BBC reports:

PwC’s chief people officer, Laura Hinton, said: “People assume that to work at a big firm they need to follow traditional working patterns – we want to make it clear that this isn’t the case. In order to recruit the best people, we recognise that we need to offer greater flexibility, different working options and a route back in for those looking to restart their careers.”

Offering flexible working was not only good for staff, but also good for business, the economy and ultimately society, she said.

“We’re likely to see a rise in people transitioning in and out of work throughout their careers and those organisations who responsibly support their people to do this will ultimately gain a competitive advantage,” Ms Hinton added.

FTN members serve supporting roles on a contract basis for a few months at a time, generally working anywhere from 20 to 40 hours a week depending. They’re especially useful during busy season for reasons that should be obvious to you, dear GC faithful. So this means you can indulge in all the chickens-with-their-heads-cut-off excitement of busy season without the hassle of a regular paycheck all other months of the year. Neat! PwC says applicants should not consider the program a gateway to a traditional job at PwC, and candidates who eventually want a bit more stability should apply to traditional openings.

FTN members who put in more than 20 hours a week are able to participate in the firm’s qualified retirement, Health & Welfare, and other benefits, but compensation for vacation, holiday, and personal time off “depends on contract arrangements,” according to the FAQ.

BBC says PwC “decided to embrace the gig economy after a study it carried out showed that almost 46% of 2,000 respondents prioritised flexible working hours and a good work-life balance the most when choosing a job.” Rather than, say, addressing why burnout is so common in the Big 4 or resolve staffing issues that leave their spreadsheet jockeys spread so thin, they simply carved out a place for benchwarmers to float in every few months to do bitch work.

In the two weeks since launch, more than 2,000 people have registered to be pioneers in public accounting’s version of the gig economy.