Exclusive – PwC experts lose jobs.

Exclusive - PwC experts lose jobs.

Insolvency staff at Big Five firm axed following 'business slowdown'.

Dozens of PricewaterhouseCoopers insolvency experts have lost their jobs in a major shake-up by the top UK firm of its business recovery service, it emerged this week.

PwC management last month axed around 45 staff from its business recovery service non-bank arm following a slowdown across UK offices.

The ‘voluntary severances’ are ahead of an expected re-launch this autumn by PwC of its Cork Gully insolvency brand, which cost 80 jobs when it was axed last year.

PwC bosses drew the redundancies, which took effect at the end of last month, from UK offices, including London, Newcastle, Gloucester and Bournemouth.

Ten staff and two partners now remain at the division’s London office, where morale is believed to be ‘low’ after six members of staff were shown the door.

A senior source said the London team was ‘severely weakened’ and would now have difficulty ‘dealing with major assignments.’

The source added: ‘In the last three months, senior managers were working on as few as two section 98 meetings a month when they should have had at least a couple a week.’

Poor marketing was blamed for the loss of business, and the source slammed the Cork Gully revamp as ‘desperation.’

A PwC spokesman confirmed that voluntary severances had been offered to non bank BRS staff, but was unable to clarify as Accountancy Age went to press how many packages had been taken up.

She declined to comment on the rumoured Cork Gully re-launch.

PwC business recovery senior managers were unavailable for comment.

Last weekend PwC entered into top level talks with US computer giant Hewlett Packard to negotiate the long-anticipated sale of its consulting division in a deal that could be worth as much as #12bn.

PwC in talks to sell consultancy arm, page 2.

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