SEATTLE – America’s biggest banks just spent a week regaling shareholders about brighter days ahead, when tax cuts add billions of dollars to the firms’ annual profits. About 8,000 people are getting left behind.
The nation’s six largest banks shrank their combined workforce at the fastest pace in two years during the final quarter of 2017, according to figures disclosed in earnings reports since Friday. Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. eliminated the most positions, while JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. added some.
The staff reductions occurred as Republicans and President Donald Trump’s White House finished a tax overhaul that will benefit banks more than most other industries. While some of the six top firms said they may dole out special bonuses to staff or boost minimum wages, most emphasized that shareholders will be the main recipients of the windfall.
The six firms have shed almost 150,000 jobs since the high-water mark in 2011. That amounts to a 12 percent cut as banks have sold off some units and look to automate more roles.
David Scheer is a Bloomberg News staff writer.
