The Dallas Morning News reports that Bank of America Corp. announced on Thursday that it will shed 30,000 to 35,000 jobs over the next three years as it struggles to absorb the financially battered Merrill Lynch & Co. Although the final and exact number of job losses at Bank of America won’t be known until early 2009, the job losses are expected to affect employees throughout the company.
Citigroup has also experienced job losses this year, sending 75,000 workers to the unemployment line, that’s 20% of its workforce. JPMorgan Chase & Co. is joining the club of banks experiencing job losses by cutting some 7,000 employees in its investment bank and slashing 9,200 jobs at Washington Mutual Inc.
Why are these banks cutting jobs so drastically? Well, the credit business has simply dried up and they aren’t expecting their customers to comeback anytime soon. They see the “recession” handwriting on the wall and they’re digging in for the long run. These banks are cutting their losses, reducing their expenses (employees) and getting very picky about who they do business with (the debtors). In this economic environment, individuals need to follow their lead.