By the bus-load, high-ranking corporate-types from across the nation are this week descending on Melbourne’s Flemington Race Course to indulge in high-fashion, booze-fuelled parties … as lowly juniors push pens and paper in the office hoping to win the office Melbourne Cup Sweep.
We reported:
So, I have been at PwC for a few years now… Melbourne Cup came around and my Big 4 friends told me of all the great parties their firms are organising, yet what do PwC do? Nothing. Every year they’ve done something for the cup, yet this year we’re sitting around twiddling our thumbs. So, while all the Partners and Managers go off to their client’s functions, us consultants and grads are left twiddling our thumbs for hours. And to add insult to injury, the managing partner sent around an email reminding us of responsible conduct at social events! Thanks for that – I don’t even get the chance to violate the code. To say everyone at the office was pissed is an understatement. I can’t wait to hear the results of the annual satisfaction survey because I’ve heard some absolutely damning responses from my colleagues going down.
Yesterday we received the following hilarious comment into the rumoured antics that took place at the event:
FirmSpy should definitely do a “Morning After” piece on all the corporate pissups occurring as we speak in the name of the Melbourne Cup. In corporate Sydney alone, thousands of professional services employees frock up, piss up and then f*ck up either at or following corporate functions.
Though I’ve benched myself this year here are a few of my memories from the Melbourne Cup corporate front of past years.
- A senior director soon to be partner at a top tier accounting firm bared his tattoed arse to a hundred plus buck a head lunch crowd;
- A whole bunch of PwC employees came down with food poisoning after the firm’s annual bigger than Ben Hur lunch at Star City, where grads get a chance to piss it up on the firm’s coin and then go off to after parties followed by inappropriate sex.
- A senior female partner at one firm gossiped to her table about the prevalence of sexual harassment at a top tier firm while an executive partner at the same table pawed a young woman.
There must be way worse tales.
Indeed, there must be way worse stories. And we want them. Send your stories to us (anonymously, if you want) at news@firmspy.com.
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Good to see PwC have learnt from their ways and the senior partners still trying to pick up juniors. Clearly didn’t learn anything from Christina Rich – more expensive mistakes waiting to happen.
I remember for the 2009 Xmas party (or “end of year” party as they call it) at KPMG the office was locked from 9pm. Usually your pass will work at anytime but apparently after the 2008 party a few staff members thought the office would be a good location to ‘get it on’ so to speak.
I really don’t see why senior people at the Big 4 should be obligated to ensure junior staff have a good time on Melbourne Cup day. Get over it.
I don’t have an issue for the big 4 partners going to these events – what I have an issue with is ” senior female partner at one firm gossiped to her table about the prevalence of sexual harassment at a top tier firm while an executive partner at the same table pawed a young woman.”. I constantly see the senior male partners at pwc hitting on the younger girls. This is extremely poor form – and like Andrew I would have thought the partners would have learnt from their past mistakes (and the ones recently in the media from David Jones). Hopefully more of these issues are made public as this is the only way they will stop.
OK Neil and Jeanette
And unfortunately it’s a bit hard to change the culture when the HR honchos turn a blind (or is it just bleary from Chadonnay?) eye when given specific examples of the sort of behaviour Jane is referring to and in certain cases are beneficiaries of sexism (as opposed to a meritocracy) themselves
FACT: All of PwC was invited to the Sydney function.
FACT: All of this sites “quotes” are based on unfounded slander.
FACT: Those wanting to “do something” about this issue are doing it no service through this channel….
FACT: Defending yourself on FirmSpy makes you look like a tool (same goes for you Marlon)
Agree with anon, get over it. Gen y sooks
Recently at KPMG one young senior consultant got paid out because of long term sexual and emotional abuse by a Partner that ruined her career with the firm. They are both no longer at KPMG and he is now with Deloitte. These things are apalling, yet they are allowed to happen everyday.
I worked at PwC for several years. The bullying and sexual harassment were unbelievable.
I and others made complaints to HR but no action was taken. I was eventually told that the reason I didn’t get promoted was because I had made the complaints. “We deal with these things between partners” I was told.
Funniest thing was that after Christina Rich sued PwC for harassment, their shallow PR strategy was to sponsor the Telstra women’s business awards. I was gob smacked when Telstra accepted the sponsorship.
Without doubt the worst culture of any organisation I have every worked in.
This sort of stuff is the tip of the iceberg.
At the small regional office I work in, the tax partner gets a pat on the back when he hires attractive young women as undergraduates. They are basically treated like eye candy for the blokes in the office. I’m glad they aren’t doing my tax return because they really aren’t up to the task. They are the kind of people who didn’t get the marks to get into a second rate university so did the summer bridging course instead.
Anonymous PwC (who seems to have changed his name to hide his real identity as a one rating suck since we last looked) should take note of anti-pwc’s experience. When you try to go through the right channels re harassment and bullying you just get a blank or acccusing look from the HR (sorry HC) henchies at PwC.