Thu Sep 12 06:51:49 UTC 2024: ## PwC US Cuts 1,800 Jobs in First Major Layoffs Since 2009
**New York, September 12** – PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has announced its first significant round of layoffs in the United States since 2009, impacting approximately 1,800 employees. The cuts, representing 2.5% of the US workforce, span various departments, including business services, audit, and tax.
The restructuring, announced in a memo by US leader Paul Griggs, is attributed to a slowdown in demand for advisory services. Griggs cited the need to “position the firm for the future, creating capacity to invest, and anticipating and reacting to the market opportunities.” The layoffs are primarily focused on advisory and products and technology operations, with roughly half of the affected employees based offshore.
PwC’s decision to cut jobs contrasts with its peers, Ernst & Young (EY), Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG), and Deloitte, who have all implemented layoffs in recent years.
The restructuring also includes significant changes to PwC’s technology group, which will be more deeply integrated into individual business lines. These changes are part of a broader structural overhaul initiated by Griggs, who took over as US leader in May.
Meanwhile, PwC’s China office is grappling with its own crisis. The firm lost a major client, Country Garden Holdings, following scrutiny over its role in auditing China Evergrande Group, which is accused of a $78 billion fraud. As a result, PwC China has implemented cost-cutting measures and layoffs. Over 50 Chinese firms, including Bank of China, have dropped PwC as their auditor or scrapped plans to rehire it.
This news comes on the somber anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, during which PwC lost five colleagues.
First Piper 