It's my turn to sweat- job cuts coming...

[Jeemie]

...and my boss informed us all that our department will be faced with "a significant task" (love the euphamism!)

I'll most likely know next week.

I'm prepared for this (sorta knew it was coming since summer), but to see it actually happening is scary.

Especially since my company is soft-pedaling the cuts something fierce (how it's being reported on our Intranet and how the financial websites are reporting it is night and day). That makes me think it's gonna be real bad.

But in the meantime, I just got a phone interview for another (safe) position and am awaiting to see if I made the cut to an in-person shot.

Keep all appendages crossed!

[MarleysGh0st]

Ugh!

Good luck, Jeemie.

[Beebs52]

Luck from here, too. That sucks.

[peacock2121]

Sorry to hear that.

Good luck with the potential job - if that one is not a fit, I trust you will find one that is.

[BackInTex]

Good luck. I know the feeling. Not now, but two year and three months ago I lived it.

[a1mamacat]

Sending positive thoughts for you.

[gsabc]

Good luck on all of this, both the layoffs and the interview. Know the feeling all too well. Management is supposed to REDUCE uncertainty, not increase it.

[mellytu74]

jeemie --

Know the feeling. Been there and done that.

You are in my thoughts. As many good wishes as possible coming from Philliy.

[christie1111]

jeemie --

Know the feeling. Been there and done that.

You are in my thoughts. As many good wishes as possible coming from Philliy.

Ditto from CT.

You know what I went through in the same industry.

Hang in there!

[kayrharris]

Hoping for the best and that things work out the way you want.

[earendel]

...and my boss informed us all that our department will be faced with "a significant task" (love the euphamism!)

I'll most likely know next week.

It's hard to type with appendages crossed but I'll keep 'em that way for you, jeemie. Let's hope the "safe" job comes through and it's one you like.

[MVLease]

Good luck. I went through it two years ago, and am now working as a security guard. I seem to be having trouble finding a company willing to hire a 49 y.o. software engineer with no degree. So, we lost our house in the spring, and this morning, we get to show up in Bankruptcy Court for our creditors' meeting (our understanding is that creditors are actually not likely to send anyone, so it will be mostly us, our attorney, and the trustee). Sweet.

-Mike

[earendel]

Good luck. I went through it two years ago, and am now working as a security guard. I seem to be having trouble finding a company willing to hire a 49 y.o. software engineer with no degree. So, we lost our house in the spring, and this morning, we get to show up in Bankruptcy Court for our creditors' meeting (our understanding is that creditors are actually not likely to send anyone, so it will be mostly us, our attorney, and the trustee). Sweet.

-Mike

I'm so sorry, Kahuna, I had no idea.

[wintergreen48]

...and my boss informed us all that our department will be faced with "a significant task" (love the euphamism!)

I'll most likely know next week.

I'm prepared for this (sorta knew it was coming since summer), but to see it actually happening is scary.

Especially since my company is soft-pedaling the cuts something fierce (how it's being reported on our Intranet and how the financial websites are reporting it is night and day). That makes me think it's gonna be real bad.

But in the meantime, I just got a phone interview for another (safe) position and am awaiting to see if I made the cut to an in-person shot.

Keep all appendages crossed!

Well, am there, doing that: Capital One is doing a massive round of layoffs, and I found myself in the pot. It came as a bit of a surprise: just before I got my own notice, my manager had assured me that I had nothing to worry about, that I was too key to the company's success (it was also a surprise to my manager, because my manager, too, got one of those unpleasant letters).

We've been living with this stuff for a long time, though: although my particular field is pretty hot (and I probably would not have any trouble getting a comparable job, provided that I am willing to move, which I would rather not do at this time, given the Young Ones and all the disruption they have had to deal with in recent years), the finance world as a whole is in turmoil-- so far this year more people in finance have been laid off than in any other year in history... and we still have two months to go.

If worse comes to worst, jeemie, if it is any consolation, I actually found myself somewhat relieved when the axe fell: I've been worrying about it for so long that, when it happened, it was somewhat anti-climactic, and I actually have a bit of a sense of relief-- there's something else I don't have to worry about (of course, I do have to worry about getting a new job, but that's different).

There is a cliche in the corporate world that 'many people find that they are better off after they get laid off,' supposedly because they often find something better, that they enjoy more, a better company (or their own business); I have seen that to be the case, not always, but often. So, good luck, hope it works out, and remember, tomorrow's another day.

[earendel]

...the finance world as a whole is in turmoil-- so far this year more people in finance have been laid off than in any other year in history... and we still have two months to go.

Is this all a consequence of the problems in the subprime housing market?

There is a cliche in the corporate world that 'many people find that they are better off after they get laid off,' supposedly because they often find something better, that they enjoy more, a better company (or their own business); I have seen that to be the case, not always, but often. So, good luck, hope it works out, and remember, tomorrow's another day.

I hope all turns out well for you, too, wintergreen.

[MarleysGh0st]

Good luck. I went through it two years ago, and am now working as a security guard. I seem to be having trouble finding a company willing to hire a 49 y.o. software engineer with no degree. So, we lost our house in the spring, and this morning, we get to show up in Bankruptcy Court for our creditors' meeting (our understanding is that creditors are actually not likely to send anyone, so it will be mostly us, our attorney, and the trustee). Sweet.

Maybe sweet if you don't have to face the creditors today, but I'm still sorry to hear the rest of it, Mike. I'd heard you mention the security guard job, but not all the rest of it.

[MarleysGh0st]

Well, am there, doing that: Capital One is doing a massive round of layoffs, and I found myself in the pot. It came as a bit of a surprise: just before I got my own notice, my manager had assured me that I had nothing to worry about, that I was too key to the company's success (it was also a surprise to my manager, because my manager, too, got one of those unpleasant letters).

Yeesh! How much more bad news will we have in this thread? Sorry, Wintergreen!

So, did TPTB make your manager give you the bad news before his turn came up?




We had a small layoff a month ago here. One guy in our department, with ten years of service, was escorted out the door at 8:30 am and was gone, just like that. (I was at least 50% wishing they had picked me, instead.) Then the CEO came up from HQ to give us a perky PowerPoint presentation about how great things are going to be next year, with our shift in product focus, barely mentioning the layoffs at at.

[geoffil]

I hope everything works out for you.

My neighbor works in the banking industry and at the meeting announcing the merger timeline (she works for LaSalle Bank and they were bought by BofA)her boss said the optimization report would be finalized next week. Opitimizing is now the new word for layoffs.

My favorite layoff term is "sunseting the division."

My sister once worked for a company that was having a "faux" team building session at a hotel. It was just a lie to separate those people getting the boot from those who were safe. The night before the team building session, the people getting laid off were told to meet at the office first before going to the hotel to pick up "supplies." Instead those people got the boot and the team builders were told nothing about the layoffs until the next day.

[wintergreen48]

Is this all a consequence of the problems in the subprime housing market?

I hope all turns out well for you, too, wintergreen.[/quote]


Thank you. Like Candide, I expect it all to work out for the best.

Ironically, we have no exposure at all in the subprime housing market: we did buyt a bank last year that owned a mortgage business, but that business did not make subprime mortgages; alas, the entire mortgage lending business is in chaos right now, so we shut that business down last quarter. The charge related to this caused us to show a small loss in our last quarterly report, but that was entirely related to those paper charges, all related to closing that business in that quarter-- absent that, we would have had a signficant increase in our profitability for the quarter. Our job cuts are being made across the board-- every department in every region was ordered to get rid of a certain percentage of its staff-- and all of the cuts are related to business economic efficiency issues: the company decided that it spends too much money and decided to make drastic cuts in order to be more lean (and, I suppose, more mean); since employees are the bigges expense, that's where the biggest cuts are being made.

We have an interesting situation, though. Our regulators are coming in to examine of our anti-money laundering programs and effectiveness. Among other things, everyone who works in this space must provide the examiners with a 'biography' that outlines their qualifications, experience and background. My manager and I will be here through the end of the examination, and will likely have to make a few presentations to the examiners, and have to provide our biographies. The interesting thing is that my manager and I are, on paper at least, the two most qualified and most experienced people in the division (my manager has pointed out that, other than our senior management, we are also the two oldest and two highest paid people in our division, but of course it is just a coincidence that we are the ones who got laid off). The fun part will be when senior management gets around to explaining the new organizational structure, and explains why the two most qualified and two most experienced people are the two who were selected for layoff; that, at least, is not my problem.

[minimetoo26]

I can't be fired, no matter how incompetent I am. I can barely get a shower, much less a vacation. And the pay and the hours suck.

I still wouldn't trade with you guys...

[wintergreen48]

I hope everything works out for you.

My neighbor works in the banking industry and at the meeting announcing the merger timeline (she works for LaSalle Bank and they were bought by BofA)her boss said the optimization report would be finalized next week. Opitimizing is now the new word for layoffs.

My favorite layoff term is "sunseting the division."

My sister once worked for a company that was having a "faux" team building session at a hotel. It was just a lie to separate those people getting the boot from those who were safe. The night before the team building session, the people getting laid off were told to meet at the office first before going to the hotel to pick up "supplies." Instead those people got the boot and the team builders were told nothing about the layoffs until the next day.

That is cold. NCNB acquired the bank that I was working for in 1991, and then created NationsBank, which later acquired Bank of America and took on BofA's name (because 'NationsBank' was so despised; same thing happened, for the same reason, when the other big Charlotte-based bank, First Union, acquired Wachovia and took over their name). At the time of the acquisition, the then-chairman of NCNB announced that there would be no layoffs, that any job cuts would be handled through attrition; six weeks later they laid off 4,000 people, all of them at the acquired banks.

Capital One actually handles layoffs in about as civilized a fashion as possible. Those of us who were 'selected' get to keep our jobs for three months, then we have two months of 'redeployment,' during which we get full pay and benefits, but our only job duty will be to try to find another job-- we don't have to show up, we don't have to do anything other than try to find a job; after two months of 'redeployment,' we get severance, which is pretty generous (up to one full year at full pay, with medical insurance); if we are still here when the 'redeployment' period starts, we are fully 'vested' in the severance package, and we will receive the severance payments even if we get another job outside the company. Also, if we are still here at the start of 'redeployment,' we are entitled to receive the annual bonus that we would otherwise have been entitled to for this year. It's hard to complain too much. A few people have actually come up to us to tell us that they wish that they had been 'selected.'

At my advanced age, and with my salary history (without getting too specific, I do make a bit more than the usual entry level salary), I do not relish having to look for a new job, but I will get by.

There's also an 'oh geez' moment here: what my sweet Margaret liked best about WWTBAM was that it meant that IF something like this ever happened, then we would have enough to get us through a bad patch. It is nice to have a nest egg when you are facing something like this.

[peacock2121]

Wintergreen,

I am sorry you are in this boat. I am pleased to hear how CapitalOne treats you in the face of it all.

May you use the redeployment in a manner that suits you and your boys.

[Bob Juch]

Bank of America to Cut 3,000 Jobs After Trading Loss (Update3)

By David Mildenberg

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Bank of America Corp., the second- biggest U.S. bank, plans to cut 3,000 jobs, mostly at the corporate and investment banking unit, after about $4 billion of trading losses, defaults and writedowns in the third quarter.

Brian Moynihan, head of wealth management, will replace Gene Taylor as head of the 20,000-person operation, Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America said in a statement late yesterday.

Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Lewis said Oct. 18 he would scale back investment banking after the division's profit plunged 93 percent to $100 million. Lewis, who blamed the drop mainly on the company's mistakes, promised to weed out units that post four or five annual profits ``and then give it all back in one year.''

``These cuts are higher than what I was anticipating,'' said Jefferson Harralson, an Atlanta-based analyst at KBW Inc. ``Ken Lewis was clearly disappointed by the performance and the bank's risk management. He is moving quickly to boost earnings for next year.''

The reductions represent less than 2 percent of the total workforce and involve business lending, treasury services, capital markets and advisory service employees, the bank said.

Bank of America fell 39 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $47.09 in 9:32 a.m. New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares have declined about 12 percent this year, compared with the 25 percent drop of Citigroup Inc., the biggest U.S. bank, and the 4.6 percent decrease of JPMorgan Chase & Co., the third-largest.

Strategic Review

``While some of these changes are a direct result of our underperformance, others have been contemplated for a number of months as we looked at how we could operate more effectively,'' Lewis said in yesterday's statement.

Lewis, 60, is reversing a strategy outlined by Taylor at an investor conference in February, when he said Bank of America would boost corporate and investment banking profit by 70 percent and revenue by 50 percent over the next five years. The goal was to gain a top-three share of investment banking in the U.S. within five years, Brian Brille, global head of investment banking, said during a separate presentation.

In the third quarter, Bank of America marked down the value of financing for LBOs and other lending by $247 million and trading mistakes led to $717 million in losses.

The company has planned to occupy 34 floors, including six trading floors totaling about 450,000 square feet, in a 54-story, $1.3 billion tower set to open next year near Times Square in midtown Manhattan.

`All the Fun'

Lewis signaled the job reductions were coming last week during his earnings conference call with analysts when he called the results ``not acceptable.'' He rejected a suggestion from Deutsche Bank AG's Michael Mayo that the bank might form a joint venture or make an acquisition to gain people with more experience.

``I've had all the fun I can stand in investment banking,'' Lewis said during the Oct. 18 call. ``So to get bigger is not something I really want to do.''

The next day, Chris Hentemann left as head of global structured products, which had reported a net revenue loss of $527 million.

``They have been the third of the three big banks in investment banking,'' said Kenneth Froewiss, a New York University finance professor. ``They've made some great strides, but they have less to show for it than JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup. At some point, they have to ask if it makes sense to continue putting their capital at risk.''

Structured Finance

Moynihan's appointment continues a series of leadership changes for investment banking over the past three years. Former Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank North America executive Carter McClelland was in charge from 1998 through mid-2005, reporting for most of that period to Edward Brown III, who quit in April 2004. The bank then reorganized in July 2005 and split responsibilities between Alvaro de Molina and Taylor.

Two months later, de Molina was named chief financial officer, leaving Taylor in sole charge of investment banking. De Molina has since become chief operating officer at GMAC Financial Services.

Moynihan, 48, who wasn't available for comment, will be based in New York, said Bank of America spokesman Robert Stickler. He joined the bank in 2004 when it acquired Boston- based FleetBoston Financial, where Moynihan led the brokerage and wealth management business.

While never working as an investment banker, Moynihan gained merger experience at Fleet, Stickler said. Moynihan joined Fleet Financial Group in 1993 as deputy general counsel. He is a graduate of Brown University and Notre Dame Law School.

Culture Clash

Taylor, 60, joined the former NCNB Corp. in 1969 and was in the same training class as Lewis. Taylor was president of Florida banking operations for most of the 1990s. After the 1998 merger with BankAmerica, he moved to San Francisco to run consumer and commercial banking in the California-based bank's territory. He returned to Charlotte as president of the consumer and commercial bank in 2001.

Keith Banks, 51, president of the Columbia Management unit, will succeed Moynihan as president of global wealth and investment management. He will be based in Boston.

Differences in management style between Wall Street executives, who take more risks, and commercial bankers led to a 15-year ``culture war'' within the company, said Tony Plath, a finance professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

``This gives Ken Lewis the ability to again change the tone and culture of the bank,'' Plath said. ``The retail bank is always going to be the driver of profitability at Bank of America and he's not going to take outsized risks.''

To contact the reporter on this story: David Mildenberg in Charlotte, North Carolina, at dmildenberg@bloomberg.net .

Last Updated: October 25, 2007 09:44 EDT

[Beebs52]

All my best wishes to everybody going through this crud and especially the attendant crud surrounding a job loss. It's not like the job loss is stressful all on its own...

Who knows, I may be joining your party within the next few months, too.

[kayrharris]

Yikes, this thread is kind of scary. It is definitely good to see MVL here. He did save us many years ago and I think a lot of us still thank him for that.

I wish everyone the best in job perils listed above. I know it must be stressful and makes me all the more thankful that I'm not in a situation like that. I can't think of any nicer people that deserve the best in life than you all do, so I'm hoping the future will bring better days soon.