EY fires employees for attending 2 training sessions simultaneously

The fired employees deny allegations of misconduct

The fired employees have denied the allegation that they were trying to earn credits faster by attending two sessions at once.

They said that it was their intention not to miss any simultaneous sessions because of their interest in various topics.

Former EY employees also said the company had not explicitly prohibited attending more than one meeting at a time and argued that EY fosters a culture of multitasking.

EY defends the action as adherence to the code of conduct

In response to employee claims, EY said its actions violated the company’s code of conduct.

“Our core values ​​of integrity and ethics are at the forefront of everything we do,” EY said in a statement.

The company further clarified, “Appropriate disciplinary action has recently been taken in a small number of cases where individuals were found to be in violation of our Global Code of Conduct and US Learning Policy.”

Previous penalties and updated policy

In 2022, EY was fined $100 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after some employees cheated on ethics exams required for Certified Public Accountant (CPA) licenses.

The company was also accused of withholding evidence during the SEC investigation.

Following these incidents, EY has revised its guidelines for future ‘Ignite Learning Week’ events, stating that employees should only attend one class at a time.