Morgan Stanley Considering Denying (Some) Employees Access To The Building

For the last year or so, Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman has sent a simple message to employees grumbling about compensation: STFU or GTFO. Now, according to Charles Gasparino, the bank may be telling a few employees to GTFO regardless of whether or not they've been bitching about pay.

Author:: Bess Levin
Updated:: Jan 14, 2019
Original:: Dec 12, 2012

For the last year or so, Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman has sent a simple message to employees grumbling about compensation: STFU or GTFO. Now, according to Charles Gasparino, the bank may be telling a few employees to GTFO regardless of whether or not they've been bitching about pay.

Sources are telling the FOX Business Network that Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman has put a lid on new hires, and is weighing layoffs. Sources say the firm has imposed an “informal hiring freeze,” and will not be adding staff; it will only replace key positions. The equity and fixed income trading divisions would likely be hit hardest by the layoffs. In January, Gorman will decide whether MS will begin additional job cuts.

Back in January, Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman sent a simple messages to his employees, who had been grumbling about their pay: STFU or GTFO. "You're naive, read the newspaper, No.1," Gorman told Bloomberg he would say to any members of his staff that wanted to give him lip about their compensation to his face. "No. 2, if you put your compensation in a one-year context to define your over all level of happiness, you have a problem which is much bigger than this job. And No. 3, if you're really unhappy, just leave." Today, in an interview with the FT, Gorman reiterated his stance and added that in addition to reducing compensation for current employees, the bank will likely be drastically cutting pay for future analysts. If anyone has a problem with that, consider applying for a gig at Bank of Mythical Pre-Crisis Era Bonuses. Alternatively, Gorman is happy to discuss a compensation plan in which you'll be awarded shares of his foot in your ass, which vest immediately. In the latest sign of the pressure Wall Street is under to cut costs and address high pay levels, James Gorman, chief executive, said that staff and remuneration would have to be sacrificed as banks cope with lower profits. “There’s way too much capacity and compensation is way too high,” Mr Gorman said in an interview with the Financial Times. “As a shareholder I’m sort of sympathetic to the shareholder view that the industry is still overpaid.” Morgan Stanley itself is already axing 4,000 jobs, 7 per cent of its workforce, by the end of this year. In the new year, Mr Gorman said, the bank will consider its next round of cost-cutting, including lower pay and bonuses. News of further pay cuts, including potentially for new entrants at the investment bank, comes just weeks after Goldman Sachs confirmed it was overhauling its well-known entry-level programme for analysts. Goldman was said to have tired of the number of analysts in the programme who left the bank for hedge funds. Mr Gorman said that Morgan Stanley will probably keep its own analyst programme, but pay could be reduced significantly. Morgan Stanley Chief Warns On Wall Street Pay [FT] Earlier: James Gorman To Employees: STFU Or GTFO

The House of Gorman is preparing for 4-figures worth of cuts.

That's a lot of awkward conversations with HR.

The four-figures worth of cuts announced this week are under way.

The House of Gorman is said to be in the process of letting some employees down easy. Morgan Stanley will this week complete a round of job cuts that will ultimately lead to the company shedding 100 sales and trading staff, underscoring what is expected to prove a dismal second quarter for Wall Street banks. The cuts are across Europe, the Middle East and Asia, according to people familiar with the New York-based bank’s plans. The bank has so far laid off about two-thirds of its original 100-person target, leaving some 33 people to go this week. Morgan Stanle Said To Shed Staff As Deals Fall [FT]

The bad news: James Gorman's pay fell 30 percent this year. The good news: he's now in a position to show employees how to take these setbacks like a man, rather than grumbling like someone who puts their compensation in a one-year context to define their overall level of happiness.

The House of Gorman will be saying good-bye to a few thousand Little Jims before year-end. Chairman and Chief Executive James Gorman said the firm's work force at year-end will fall 7% from 2011, reflecting previously announced layoffs as well as the firm's efforts in applying "a high bar for replacing attrition." The forecast implies a reduction of more than 4,000 jobs from the firm's global headcount of 61,899 at Dec. 31. Last winter, Morgan Stanley announced 1,600 job cuts spread across its businesses, which was its largest such cutback since late 2008 and early 2009. The firm completed roughly 4% to 5% of those cuts in January and will complete an additional 2% to 3% by the end of 2012, a spokeswoman said. Morgan Stanley Expects 7& Cut In Its Workforce [WSJ]

Employees within fixed income may need to find room at another inn. People inside Morgan Stanley are bracing for layoffs in the fixed income department. Sources inside Morgan Stanley say people within the fixed income business are expecting a dramatic downsizing of that business. They are not thinking about a total exit, maybe exiting certain parts of it, spinning those off if they can, but clearly a radical downsizing. MS Planning Layoffs [FBN]