On Tue, 16 Aug 1994, Doug Henwood wrote:
>
> There is no "Wall Street bust" yet. Profits, until the beginning of this
> year, were at record levels. But as John Keefe, a banking analyst who I
> think still subscribes to PEN-L, put it, it was only record profits that
> were keeping employment steady. Unlike previous WS booms, there was no
> hiring binge, and there was little spillover into other industries
> (retail in particular).
Thank you, Doug, for the citation, and yes I am still lurking.
Here are a few more details on the Wall Street employment situation:
In the past few years the Street has kept down its hiring of so-
called "back office" people, that is, the people who process
transactions and do other paper work, while increasing the front
office -- the "producers" like salespeople and traders.
Part of this suppression of lower-pay jobs has been done through
expanding technology, and doing the paperwork at the "point of
sale." The rest of the absence of growth has come in the form of
outsourcing, or in some cases, most notably Salomon Brothers,
moving the back office out of New York to Tampa, Florida.
It's also interesting to note that several firms have been able
to gain tax concessions from the city, by threatening to move
their operations out of state.
Finally, last week we saw the first layoffs from Wall Street, in
response to the sagging financial markets. (Greenspan giveth and
Greenspan taketh away.) Bond trading is not what it used to be,
and Merrill Lynch, Smith Barney and a few others have made small
cuts to the number of traders.
John Keefe
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
212-475-5580
