Ernst & Young might not pay accounting associates overtime.

Ernst & Young is a Big 4 accounting firm. For years it has required its accounting associates work long hours for a straight salary, with no overtime. Some of these associates are termed "unlicensed associate" meaning that the associate does not have his CPA license. Ernst & Young treats these unlicensed associates as exempt employees. This investigation seeks to have these unlicensed associates treated as non exempt under state law and therefore untitled to overtime pay.

Given the long hours that young associates typically work, this has likely resulted in thousands of dollars in potential damages to affected workers. In fact, an associate who earned $42,000 a year and worked approximately 250 hours of overtime per year may be entitled to approximately $40,000 in overtime pay over a 5-year period. This amount does not even include the substantial penalties and interest that would be imposed for the willful failure to pay overtime. The actions of the Big 4 Accounting Firms are in stark contrast to many smaller accounting firms who have always treated their unlicensed associates as non-exempt employees.