Layoffs seem certain. But this downturn has been different so far. Past layoffs drained talent and made recruits look askance at firms that showed little commitment to their workers in bad times. This time around, rather than resorting to execution en masse, Wall Street managers are trying to trim with a scalpel. This is nothing compared to the bloodbath of previous downturns.
Firms just don t want to lose market share when business picks up again.
But this is a competitive business, so these firms will try to hold the line as long as possible. To buy time, Wall Street is scrambling to curb expenses. In late February the firms got more serious. Goldman Sachs said it would cut 5 to 6 percent of its workforce through annual performance reviews. In mid-March Schwab laid off 3,400 workers, more than 13 percent of its employees, and Robertson Stephens, the investment banking unit of FleetBoston Financial Corp., cut its staff by 5 percent.