Accenture cuts 19,000 jobs on slowdown fears

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Accenture has announced plans to cut 19,000 jobs, about 2.5 per cent of its workforce, as corporate clients grow increasingly cautious about the strength of the global economy.

The business, one of the world's biggest consultancy groups, follows others in the sector in implementing sweeping layoffs after lowering its annual forecast of sales and profits.

McKinsey is cutting up to 2,000 jobs in its 45,000 workforce, while KPMG is shedding almost 700 posts in its US advisory business and about 200 in Australia — about 2 per cent of its total in each country.

Only 16 months ago Accenture pledged to create 3,000 tech jobs in the UK, half of them outside of London, over three years. A spokesman for Accenture said this commitment still