As you may have heard, around 100,000 financial services employees are set to be laid off by the end of the year (with the cuts already beginning for some). How will those made redundant attempt to get back in the game? Some will hire headhunters. Others will reach out to friends in the industry. Yet others will post their resumes on employment websites, hoping to catch a nibble. And a small but apparently growing group of people will take the less traditional path of driving a New York City cab, which offers the dual-function of an income and a captive audience for your pitch.
Tough times have prompted more New Yorkers to seek financial relief and upward mobility in the taxi trade. The number of licensed city cabbies has risen by 10 percent since the stock market began its decline in late 2007, according to the Taxi and Limousine Commission. License renewals are up, too, officials said, suggesting that drivers who used to move on to higher-paying jobs are sticking with the hack trade for now. At Master Cabbie Taxi Academy in Long Island City, Queens, instructors have noticed an increase in former financial workers since the recession began. “As they lay off, people come through,” the owner, Terry Gelber, said.
Scott Curtis, for instance, worked on Wall Street for 25 years until he was made a casualty of the recession. When he first lost his job, he got in touch with a few recruiters and signed up with Monster, though neither helped him land a position with a hedge fund, where he’s hoping to end up.
“There are 20 million other people on Monster.com,” said Mr. Curtis, who chats up his fares in case a chief executive or headhunter has stumbled in. “I thought people would see this, and think, ‘He’ll go the extra yard to go and get a job.’ ” Passengers who climb into Mr. Curtis’s cab are greeted by a laminated sheet of paper reading: “Ask to see my résumé. You won’t be sorry!” It has led to three interviews, one with a major British bank, though none has yet resulted in a job offer. Mr. Curtis, who is hoping to land a hedge-fund position, said he decided to become a cabby after having little luck with traditional headhunters and job Web sites. “I just figured the best way to market myself was to be driving around town with a sign that said: ‘Hey, help me! I need a job!’ ” he said.
While cab-driving offers the laid-off a unique opportunity to get their names out there, “exploit the inefficiencies of the market” (“Herb Reyes heads to the usually deserted Avenue of the Americas in Midtown rather than the Meatpacking District, where he knows bankers who work the Asian markets will be looking for rides”), and earn “all-cash wages” as opposed to 90% stock/10% cash deferred over 12 years, it does come with some downsides, like ferrying around idiot first-years who you’re pretty sure don’t know dick about finance.
Janet, a JPMorgan veteran [who declined to use her last name] was finishing an afternoon shift the other day in her work uniform: a navy blazer, floral scarf and Ralph Lauren sunglasses…The regulars at the garage in the Bronx did not think she would last a week; two years later, she is still driving. She keeps a stack of 20 résumés by the driver’s seat, handing them out to passengers. One man submitted her name for three jobs at UBS, but it came to nothing. “I wanted a job while my son was in Europe,” she said. ”I set myself a benchmark that by the time he’s back, I’d have a real job. And when he came back, and I didn’t — ” Her voice trailed off. “I was depressed for a week,” she said. “I picked up some young kids from JPMorgan, who I knew didn’t know what they were talking about in the cab, but they had the job. I didn’t.”
According to the Times, those considering the cab route might want to proceed with caution, while those currently driving might want to consider giving up.
The new crop of cabbies might do well to consider the example of a predecessor: James Williamson III, an M.B.A. graduate who gained some renown in 2008 for his own résumé-in-the-backseat routine. Although his efforts earned a segment on CNN, Mr. Williamson, who studied business at La Salle University, never found a job after 18 months behind the wheel…Last year, Mr. Williamson gave up his hack license after an aunt found him work as a nursing assistant. Today, he drives a van for disabled travelers. He is still looking for a professional position.
Gray Lady killjoys aside, there is some good news to be gleaned here, which is that UBS is apparently one of the few firms actively hiring! Get in touch today.
Scott Curtis, for instance, worked on Wall Street for 25 years until he was made a casualty of the recession. When he first lost his job, he got in touch with a few recruiters and signed up with Monster, though neither helped him land a position with a hedge fund, where he’s hoping to end up.
Mr. Williamson, who studied business at La Salle University, never found a job after 18 months behind the wheel…Last year, Mr. Williamson gave up his hack license after an aunt found him work as a nursing assistant. Today, he drives a van for disabled travelers. He is still looking for a professional position.
– You dont even know where to start with the statements above.
Jack Welch is driving a cab? Things _are_ tough.
C'mon, give these guys a break. They're actually holding down productive jobs instead of camping out under a tarp in a plaza downtown, whining that life isn't fair.
U.S. citizens who speak english driving cabs?
This economy is really fucked up.
A full hour has elapsed on not ONE UBS MD has jumped on this news item and inquired about how to increase his income. Guess that's why they're MDs at UBS.
UBS M.D.'s only drive Honda Civics you idiot. If you knew what made your employees happy maybe you would still be in HR.
Nope Jack Donaghy got him a job on the Fun Cooker quality control team.
True dat yo.
Don't care what the numbers say, it's still impossible to catch a cab in midtown from 7am-7pm.
- Out of towner who resorts to sneaking in through the side entrance of hotels and pretending he's a guest so the guy can whistle him a cab or else take the subway.
Craigslist is excellent if you want to get part-time jobs and meet tons of bankers.
"One man submitted her name for three jobs at UBS, but it came to nothing."
Translation: She was offered a position but didn't want to take a pay cut.
This. Instead of whining about how that $100K in NYU english lit education only qualifies you to make SBUX coffee, these people are making lemonade from lemons.
Don't Tyler and Berkeley have their resumes delicately placed too as they work their night job? This is not a novel idea.
Well how about that! And I wondered why my pedicab driver on Saturday night looked like Oswald Gruebel… duh! It WAS Oswald Gruebel! Think it was wrong that I used the paper he handed me to clean the dog-poo off my shoe?
Mr. Curtis, what are you doing January 13, 2012. We may have a seat for you in the House Chamber. I think we will go with something like this, "The other night I took Michelle out for dinner and a play in NYC. When my motorcade got stuck in traffic we were forced to take a taxi where we met Scott Curtis, who is with us here tonight. Scott is an enterprising American that Wall Street has failed but he refused to give up even in an economy wrecked by my predecessor."
Now traditionally the way this goes is that you are a national treasure for between 15 minutes and a few months and then you will probably lose even your taxi driving gig and become homeless. But consider it a great sacrifice to a country that served you well for over 25years.
Or Kent State Anthropology
Ha, you got there first.
Only if you're a straight male model who's willing to be "enthusiastic" in your future encounters.
- Ambitious Male Model still looking to land an IB gig
If some of these clowns were such hot shit traders why are they looking for work when they should be trading their own accounts from he comforts of home and making a bundle……. fuckin losers……..
Not all these people are traders….some of them are probably from Operations or Back officer Risk…..also trading from home requires decent capital in order to make a decent income. Stop with the ignorant comments already.
Good for you Scott –
Sure beats Occupying a job vs Occupying Wall Street and looking for handouts! If more people felt less entitled this country would be a better place….
What makes you think these people occupying wall street are looking for handouts. Most everyone works in this country and still most people are not getting ahead. The problem is that the system is rigged. No way do some of these CEO's deserve the pay they get. Since our taxpayer money went to save the economic system by bailing out Wall Street, is it so wrong to ask that it NOT go towards executive bonuses? And entitlements? I think a lot of people who don't work for a living but hold tons of stock through an inheritance and are living off of the dividends and capital gains feel that they are entitled to a lower tax rate than a cab driver, and anyone who says different mist be waging "class warfare" right??