everyone that works at pwc got one but the majority won't think about signing it because that will mean instant firing.  if you aren't a current employee i don't think there are any repercussions you could face so it's probably worth a shot to sign if you don't work there -- what' the worst that could happen, you get more money?

i'm at EY but i really hope that the class action lawsuit is successful since i'ved worked a ton of overtime and didn't pass the cpa until 5 year after i started so i would be eligible for back pay for that entire period. 

the reasons they give for firing you won't be for the lawsuit.  they can always say it's performance or staff reductions caused by the economy.  they can be imaginative.  but either way, i know several people at pwc who will not sign the letter because they believe they'll lose their jobs.

i'm not as familar with the pay for non-bar certified law assistants but the argument i've made in the past for other people in similar situations such as investment bankers relates to pay outside of salary.  investment bankers get bonuses which are equal to or more than their salaries which can technically be partly for overtime pay.  big 4 accounting firms give bonuses of like $3K if you're lucky which could never be considered overtime pay. 

if pwc ends up losing, and the big 4 have to pay overtime, i think they would basically just lower salaries across the board and then pay overtime payments which would approximate what you salary already would have been.  the concept of eating time would be gone and budgets would be destroyed and you'd also have a lot of people who are simply surfing the internet claiming that they worked 14 hours day (i have to call people out on this all the time).  but i really care about what i could get out of this which is a lot of money.

i do think that the overall outcome of this case could result in havoc because the large number of employees which would fall under the except employee category.  please sign your letter