Young Goldman Sachs bankers ask for 80-hour week cap
First-year bankers at investment bank Goldman Sachs have warned that they might quit unless their gruelling working conditions improve. An internal survey among 13 employees showed they averaged 95 hours of work a week and slept five hours a night. Their personal relationships also suffered as did their physical and mental health. The analysts warned that they would be likely to leave within six months unless things changed.
The survey offers a rare glimpse into the fiercely competitive work culture of Wall Street’s top firms, where junior analysts scramble for well-paid career paths. The survey, which began circulating on social media on Wednesday, was conducted by a group of US-based first-year investment banking analysts among themselves. “The sleep deprivation, the treatment by senior bankers, the mental and physical stress… I’ve been through foster care and this is arguably worse,” one respondent said in the survey, which has been seen by the BBC. “This is beyond the level of ‘hard-working’, this is inhumane/abuse,” said another. All of the respondents said the job had negatively affected their relationships with friends and family, while 77% said they had been victims of workplace abuse.(BBC)…[+]