Competition watchdog succeeds in easing restrictions on trainee accountants moving firms

Under the policy, trainee accountants, who are under contract with an authorised training firm, had to secure 'permission in writing' from their current employer to 'transfer the balance of the contract to an alternative training firm before applying to, or interviewing with, any alternative employer'.

Accountancy body Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) has agreed to change its policy that applied restrictions on the transferring of active training contracts between firms after the competition watchdog raised concerns that it might breach competition law.

Under the policy, trainee accountants, who are under contract with an authorised training firm, must secure “permission in writing” from their current employer to “transfer the balance of the contract to an alternative training firm before applying to, or interviewing with, any alternative employer”.

“This written permission should be requested by any interviewing firm,” the policy added.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) received a complaint in June earlier this year questioning whether this policy was a breach of competition law.

Director of antitrust at the CCPC, Craig Whelan, said: “We were concerned that it would restrict competition for training accountants and restrict their mobility to move between firms.

"What we see with these sort of labour market restrictions is that, over time, they lead to suppression of wages and worse conditions for employees." 

Although CAI was of the view that the rule did not have a significant operational impact, following engagement with the CCPC, it agreed to amend the policy. CCPC have not found a breach in this case and CAI have not admitted to one. 

In a statement CAI said the previous policy was “designed to uphold the integrity of the training contract system and maintain trust between all parties involved”.

“We know from our engagement with our training partners that permission is typically sought at the job offer stage, so we are pleased to amend our guidance to match this common approach.” 

Under the revised rules, employer approval is now only required after a trainee accepts a new role and is ready to transfer, not before interviewing or exploring opportunities. 

Mr Whelan added they would encourage any associations that operate similar training schemes like this or “have rules around how members transfer or regulate the conduct of members in that way, to review their policies in this space, to update them if they are likely to breach competition law”.

“Next time we come across this, we may go for a harder enforcement approach than we did here,” he said.