Sources inform ''Globes'' that employees at Israel's largest accounting firm Kost, Forer, Gabbay and Kasierer - Ernst & Young (Israel) are worried about lay-offs in the aftermath of the US financial crisis. The firm denied plans for widespread lay-offs.
Kost, Forer, Gabbay and Kasierer has 1,700 employees. The firm is expected to make cuts in support services, but not in its auditing services, because of the drop in IPOs both in Israel and abroad. IPO advice is a core business of the firm.
The firm is also known for paying higher salaries than in the norm at other accounting firms. The high salaries are now a burden because a large proportion of the firm's revenue is in dollars because of its extensive business in the US.
Accounting industry sources are worried about the sector's future in view of the global financial crisis. A managing partner at one firm predicts that many firms will fire second-rate staff. Other sources noted that accounting firms have no shortage of work because of the introduction of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in the US.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 17, 2008
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