EY, PwC, KPMG and Deloitte are making exit tough for employees

If you think quitting a firm was quite easy and you would get a fancy farewell, this may not be the case anymore. With attrition levels going high, companies are making it tougher for employees to exit.

Companies including EY, PwC, Deloitte and KPMG are making exit rules stricter and making employees serve notice period for even a year.

A senior partner from one of the four consultancies told Economic Times that he bagged an offer from a rival company and he considered it a lifetime opportunity. But, he was made to serve a six-month notice period, or gardening leave, when he had to sit at home and do nothing.

"They withheld my capital money. Thankfully, the firm I was planning to join told me that I could put the capital in their firm whenever I get it from my erstwhile firm," the senior partner told the financial daily.

ET reported that in consultancies, partners need to invest money at one go or in installments - before they become first-year partners.

"In PwC, we have had a six-month notice period policy for many years for partners and we are not planning to change it. On a philosophical level, I firmly believe that everyone should have a right of choice where they want to work," said Deepak Kapoor, Chairman, PwC India.

"Yes, bonuses and capital money are delayed by 12-18 months on a case-to-case basis. This is not uniform for all partners and it depends on his/her relations with the firm and the CEO," a senior partner who recently quit the firm he was working with told ET.

Attrition levels are set to increase, executives told ET at the Big Four.

Most of the taxation and consultancy divisions are poaching from rival firms.

"Auditing and tax partners have a lot of inside information about companies they are working on. So these companies would rather change their auditing/taxation firm from one Big Four to another than change the partner," a partner told ET.

(Image: Indiatimes)