The one-time leave change
Accenture has made a one-time adjustment to its vacation policy that allows employees to carry over unused leave into the next financial year, which starts on September 1. People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the move is partly intended to keep more employees available during the closing weeks of fiscal 2026 rather than taking time off. The company's financial year ends on August 31. Employees who previously faced pressure to use up balances before that date now have the option to save them, giving staff more flexibility on how and when to take leave.
What the CEO told staff
In an internal memo seen by Bloomberg, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet wrote, "Our shareholders are counting on us to deliver a strong quarter in Q4 — everyone can contribute." Sweet asked employees to "find more ways to serve clients that create more revenue in the quarter and to originate more," framing the carry-over concession as a way to widen the pool of workers available for client work in late August. The Economic Times, citing Bloomberg, reported that the change is also expected to keep more employees available during what it called the crucial August sales period.
Why the push matters now
Accenture is approaching fiscal year-end after a third quarter in which new bookings fell 2 per cent for the period ended May 31, and its revenue forecast for the August quarter came in below the average analyst estimate. Following the results, Accenture's shares dropped sharply; they have since recovered part of those losses. The company is also contending with investor concerns about the longer-term effect of artificial intelligence on demand for traditional consulting and technology services, raising the stakes on demonstrating momentum heading into the new financial year.
A separate work-hour dispute at Infosys
In an unrelated French labour case, Infosys was fined roughly €175,000 (around Rs 2 crore) by DRIEETS Île-de-France, the regional labour authority, after its employee working-hour tracking system was found not to fully meet local requirements. India Today noted the Infosys penalty alongside the Accenture policy change, but the two issues involve different companies and different regulatory questions and are not otherwise linked in the reporting.
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