It must be really bad at the bid boyz...
-------------------
<<By PATRICK MCGEEHAN
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
NEW YORK -- Up and down Wall Street, employees are bracing for the ax.
Fears of impending layoffs are growing as securities firms scramble to slash costs as trading losses mount and deals dry up. The widespread expectation that Merrill Lynch & Co., Bankers Trust Corp. and Citigroup Inc.'s Salomon Smith Barney unit will cut thousands of jobs as soon as next week has cast a sudden pall.
>>
<snip>
Perhaps Easy Al can help here with the sentiment:
<<"Everybody's focusing on predictability," Mr. Goldstein said. "Nobody wants to be caught off guard like they have been with emerging markets and a few other areas. Firms are saying for the time being, I'd rather not be in those businesses.">>
<<The absence of holiday parties at some firms will add to the gloom. At Merrill, said a person familiar with the matter, some parties were
canceled, then reinstated out of fear that morale would be damaged, then canceled again out of concern that celebrating after layoffs would seem macabre.
A Merrill spokesman said ''all expenses are receiving extra scrutiny, including travel, entertainment and special events." He declined to comment on rampant rumors circulating inside and outside Merrill that the firm will cut 1,000 to 3,000 jobs next week.>>
<snip>
<<"The mood is gray and miserable," said Joan Zimmerman, a Wall Street recruiter with GZ Stephens. "The minute a major investment bank makes a significant move, either in terms of staff cutting or compensation, the Street will follow suit.">>
|
