PwC paid out around $120,000 to settle a workers' compensation claim with a former junior accountant who claims he was bullied for being Tasmanian, disparaged in front of a client, assigned him too much work with too little support and received unfair performance evaluations.
Michael Bradley, 34, alleges that these factors contributed to him suffering a breakdown while working at the big four accounting and consultancy firm.
The firm, which settled without admission of liability, disputed his claims, saying that he was not up to his assigned tasks and that his problems were not caused by his work environment but due to a genetic predisposition.
Mr Bradley's state deteriorated to the point that he was assigned to the Public Trustee of Western Australia which, on his behalf, accepted the settlement in 2013, citing the difficulty of proving a workers' compensation claim.
Mr Bradley is now speaking out because he continues to feel he was mistreated by the firm.
"They put me on their biggest clients, and once I'd done the work, they said I was no good," he told The Australian Financial Review.
"It made me sick because I didn't leave, I thought it would come right and I persevered."
Lawyers, accountants and depression
The story is unusual because the level of workplace problems in professional services firms is difficult to ascertain as people are reluctant to speak out publicly.
A 2009 study found lawyers had more than double the rate of distress of the general population, and roughly half had experienced depression, while a 2011 survey by Beaton Research and Consulting found around 49 per cent of lawyers experienced some symptoms of depression, compared to a rate of 43 per cent for engineers, 41 per cent for accountants and an overall rate of 40 per cent.
Mr Bradley's settlement does not have a confidentiality clause as it was handled by the Public Trustee.
A PwC spokeswoman said it would be inappropriate to comment on Mr Bradley's case.
"We are committed to providing an environment for our people that is both supportive and caring and take our responsibility for the wellbeing of our people very seriously," the PwC spokeswoman said.
"Mental health is a significant challenge for our whole community.
"At PwC we have an extensive program focused on the health and wellbeing of our people.
"We actively promote this program to help our employees stay well, both physically and mentally, and know where they can go and who they can talk to if they need help and support."
Job started off well
Mr Bradley began working as an accountant at PwC's Perth office in early 2008 and was quickly assigned to do audit work at a large listed resource client, according to a statement of claim submitted as part of his workers' compensation claim.
He said he was doing well and his initial performance reviews were positive despite claiming he was given work that was above his experience level and with little supervision.
In one instance, Mr Bradley alleges he was assigned to a first-year client, which involves more work, in the energy industry with inadequate supervision and unrealistic deadlines.
It was an experience he alleges he repeatedly encountered on other projects.
Working long hours
He alleges he found himself working extended hours late into the evening for weeks at a time, including some weekends, leaving him stressed and exhausted and with little time to study for his Chartered Accounting qualification.
He also alleges that PwC colleagues mocked him for being from Tasmania and gave him the nickname "Bradlecakes", despite his repeated requests they stop. In another instance, he alleges a PwC staff member called him "dodgy" in front of a client.
At the end of a short project in mid-2009, Mr Bradley received a negative evaluation he claimed was unfair given his workload at the time, according to a summary of the case by an independent counsel retained by the Public Trustee.
Further negative reviews resulted in Mr Bradley being put onto two consecutive performance plans.
'Unfairly targeted'
Mr Bradley claimed this was unfair as he believed he was performing well given his workload and the fact he continued to be assigned to projects for major clients.
"I was put on first-year client projects without adequate supervision when I had just two years of experience," he said.
"On a first-year client it requires someone with more experience because you're doing the audit from scratch and learning about the business.
"These people are not professional."
PwC staff said in their statements that Mr Bradley was not working to the required level.
Either way, Mr Bradley's health suffered following the review process, as he described in the case summary.
"At this time, I hit my ultimate low point. I had tried to stay positive throughout my experience working for PwC but this was too much," he wrote.
Mr Bradley took time off work to deal with the shock of the evaluation which he claimed was "totally unreasonable".
"Up until that point although I was tired from work, I was in some ways proud of my achievements on my clients," he wrote.
"My clients were progressing well as you intend when you set up work and new relationships."
Over the next year, Mr Bradley's mental and physical health continued to deteriorate even as he continued to be assigned to work on client matters.
Leaving PwC
In June 2010, a little over two years into his time at PwC and with his health getting worse, he resigned.
Mr Bradley returned to stay with his family in Tasmania, and was diagnosed with a mix of anxiety and depression.
He began a workers' compensation claim against PwC and was deemed medically unfit to work at the end of 2011.
Mr Bradley was referred to a psychiatrist who assessed that he had developed a severe anxiety and depressive disorder in response to stress at work.
The psychiatrist said the onset of the disease was during his time at PwC, with a possible cause the alleged bullying and Mr Bradley's belief that he had been demeaned in front of a client.
The psychiatrist also said that Mr Bradley had a tendency to be a perfectionist, and worried that an extended compensation claim would cause his condition to get even worse.
A report prepared by a psychiatrist working on behalf of PwC in June 2012 said it was "not conceivable" that Mr Bradley had been put into situations he could not manage on his own and said
his depression was either due to "him being unable to cope with the reasonable tasks expected of him" or had "occurred spontaneously" and could be related to a genetic predisposition to mental health problems.
PwC offered to settle for $100,000 plus a contribution to costs of $20,000 in September 2012.
Mr Bradley said his mental health has since improved but he continues to claim he was badly treated by PwC.
He has done some auditing work at other firms and is currently looking for work.
"There is a huge gap between the way PwC says it treats people and the way I was treated," Mr Bradley said.
"I'm trying to move on with my life but I'm still angry about what happened."
Professional disputes
