Major accounting firm to offer student loan allowance as new perk

Accounting giant Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) announced Tuesday that it will offer a student loan stipend to select employees starting in July of 2016.

Just under half of the firm's 46,000 American workers will be eligible for the new perk, which will pay $1,200 per year for up to six years — totaling a quarter of the average student loan load of $28,400 — with no repayment or other contract obligation.

PwC is not the first company to offer a benefit like this, but it is likely the largest, which means this recruiting boon could well be trendsetting. "We saw this as a way to provide leadership on a major societal issue, as well as something that's really important to our people," said PwC's Michael Fenlon. "We believe we've got to be part of the solution."

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