Not long after announcing cuts of approximately 1,000 members of the consultancy staff at U.S. PwC locations, the firm is back in the news with more pink slips. This time, it's the back office functions - mailroom and clerical jobs - that are being reduced.

The work required of these positions is not being cut, but the people remaining on the jobs will have consolidated responsibilities. The mail and clerical functions are being reorganized into a new division called "shared services," according to the division's new head, Eugene Donnelly, who has recently been appointed CFO of PwC in the states.

The new method of streamlining this work entails an internal reorganization whereby mail and clerical functions are to be performed by lines of service, such as assurance, tax, consulting, and so on.

Employees who are leaving the workforce will receive "the normal severance package, which includes outplacement assistance," according to Mr. Donnelly. Those employees who remain will find, not an increased workload, but "more efficient redistributions of the work."