Morgan Stanley Has Canned Enough Employees At This Point

Great news for anyone who's been sitting nervously at their desk at Morgan Stanley the last few days, wondering whether or not their boss was about to tap them on the shoulder to go have a chat with HR: if you've made it this long, you're safe! There will be no more human layoffs for the foreseeable future (plants may still be at risk).

Author:: Bess Levin
Updated:: Jan 14, 2019
Original:: Jan 18, 2013

Great news for anyone who's been sitting nervously at their desk at Morgan Stanley the last few days, wondering whether or not their boss was about to tap them on the shoulder to go have a chat with HR: if you've made it this long, you're safe! There will be no more human layoffs for the foreseeable future (plants may still be at risk).

"We are very comfortable with the headcount we have right now. These have been tough decisions. No one enjoys going through a restructuring the kind we have been through and other firms on the Street have been going through. Every day, it is a different financial institution. We are down 6000 people from 12 1/2 months ago. It is pretty incredible. That's now built into our run rate of expenses. We feel very comfortable with where we are now. The run rate is now lower as a result of those people coming out."

Morgan Stanley Not Exiting Fixed Income [Bloomberg]

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]

Specifically, her rights to Perrier on the company dime. It's unclear what this woman's name is so moving forward she'll simply be referred to as The One With Brass Balls And A Dislike Of Tap. The daily Seamless stipend is considered sacred for employees, and any abuse of the system appears generally overlooked by higher-ups. When Lehman Brothers went under, for instance, Morgan Stanley lowered the Seamless limit from $30 to $25, much to the anger of workers. "People went nuts," recalls a former employee. "Every so often there were these fireside chats with [Morgan Stanley CEO] John Mack 'Da Knife' and a collection of analysts. One of the women on the call asked Mack to raise the limit to $30 again. Mack, not really having paid much attention to expenses, was surprised to hear it had been reduced. Concerned, he asked her why she needed $30 instead of just $25. She said that with the new reduction, 'I can't order my Perrier anymore.'" The next day, as legend has it, there was an entire case of Perrier on her desk--courtesy of John Mack. In related news, the Morgan Stanley Seamless stipend is currently at $20. And while filing formal complaints at the top might have worked when MS was a free-for-all orgy of sparkling water and Italian pastries and whatever else your heart desired,** anyone considering pleading his/her case to James Gorman re: why this just won't do should also think about boxing their shit up first, lest a hasty exit be necessary. How Wall Street Bankers Use Seamless To Feast On Free Lobster, Steak, And Beer [Fast Company] **Particularly if what your heart desired was a pair of fierce as fuck shoes.

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.