Ernst & Young Is Paying Employees $100 Million in Bonuses Just for Being Human

Ernst & Young Is Paying Employees $100 Million in Bonuses Just for Being Human

Thu, September 3, 2026 at 5:00 PM GMT+3 1 min read

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Accounting giant Ernst & Young will be rewarding employees for being good at the stuff AI can't do. The firm's U.S. division is investing $100 million this fiscal year in bonuses for employees who show human skills such as adaptability, judgment and innovation, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Employees can get small, one-off bonus payments up to $500, while people and teams who make a major impact can pocket up to $25,000, five times the previous award cap. Anyone at the firm can nominate a colleague, and there's no ceiling on how much someone can ultimately receive.

EY isn't the only firm rewarding human attributes. KPMG overhauled its audit internship training this summer to emphasize critical thinking, and PwC rolled out a curriculum built around empathy and creativity alongside AI skills.

"This isn't a problem that can be solved with a training course or a single program," says Ginnie Carlier, EY Americas' chief talent and culture officer. "It's going to take a sustainable, radical change."

The irony? The AI industry is driving real growth at EY, with AI-related revenue up 30% year-over-year in 2025. The firm just wants to make sure the humans using it still know how to think.

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