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Young, Laid Off Wall Street Suits Can't Believe Employers Are So Cruel
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 22, 2011
Modified Nov 22, 2011
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Nov 22, 2011
Modified Nov 22, 2011
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Will no one think of the young bankers in these hard economic times? Between the third quarters of 2008 and 2011 the financial sector lost 110,000 employees between the ages of 20 and 34. DealBook spoke to one 28-year-old former Credit Suisse employee, who was hired and fired in a week's time. "I did everything right. I came into work every day, I put in long hours, and I still got punched in the face."
Graduating from an Ivy League school doesn't guarantee a position as a master of the universe as it once did. One Harvard Business School professor says that firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are "going to hire half the people they hired before" the downturn. Goldman Sachs even cancelled its information session at Wharton this year. Is that why we saw madras shorts flying half-mast at Martha's Vineyard last week?
Another 27-year-old former employee of a Connecticut hedge fund was laid off in September, and since then his life has turned into a cruel simulacrum of the most pathetic of lives: "Sam Meek…used to spend $500 on charity dinners and lavish golf outings. Now, it’s home-cooked meals and beer on the sofa." Sofas? People still sit on those things?
Sure, finance workers get "typically get large severance packages, including the use of outplacement services," but that's barely enough to cover the Equinox membership until swimsuit season. Pro tip: despite the misleading name, Trader Joe's WILL NOT pay you for stock tips.
A former Nomura employee who refused to be named because "a confidentiality clause is attached to her severance package" wonders how the world can be so cruel. “I went to the right schools, I know the right people and I’m very good at what I do. But when you have to cut costs, you have to cut costs." So jaded by the savagery of the financial sector, she's beginning to understand the motives of the Occupy Wall Street movement: “I’m in the same boat as these guys. I just want to start working.”
May we suggest a career in nursing?
Tagged
bankers
economy
finance
occupy wall street
protests
rich people
trader joe's
wall street
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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