A Midwestern investment bank forced junior employees to work grueling, 110-hour workweeks that resulted in at least two people being hospitalized — including one who was diagnosed with a failed pancreas, according to a report.
Junior bankers at Robert W. Baird, the century-old, privately held investment bank based in Milwaukee, Wis., said they were assigned 20-hour workdays and that they were scolded if they left their desks after pulling an all-nighter, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The report follows a spate of incidents in recent years during which at least two junior bankers — Carter McIntosh of Jefferies and former Bank of America analyst Leo Lukenas, 35 — died after they were made to work as much as 100 hours per week.
McIntosh died of a suspected drug overdose while Lukenas suffered a blood clot.
The death of Lukenas prompted scrutiny of Wall Street practices — moving some banks to institute tighter regulations including caps on hours and more stringent oversight guaranteeing time off for employees.
“As an analyst and associate, you are treated as scum,” one anonymous Baird banker wrote in a post that went viral earlier this month on Wall Street Oasis, an internet message board that is popular among professionals in finance.
Hundreds of other anonymous Baird employees responded to the post with similar stories and claims of mistreatment by the bank.
Two former members of Baird’s industrials team required hospitalization after extended work periods, including one who had previously voiced workload concerns to human resources, the Journal reported.
Another employee reportedly suffered pancreas failure, a medical crisis attributed by doctors to their intensive 20-hour workdays.
After this banker was forced to pay a second visit to the hospital due to health issues, the banker was terminated due to alleged low productivity, according to the Journal.
In one particularly stark incident, a former analyst reported angering his manager by stepping away briefly from his desk after working on materials for an ongoing deal all night.
The manager insisted that the analyst should not leave his desk for more than five minutes without prior notice.
In response to the Wall Street Oasis post, management convened a town hall for the industrials team during which junior bankers were reportedly encouraged to come forward with complaints.
Despite these reforms, former employees with the industrials team, one of the bank’s top-performing units, reported that their bosses would regularly break rules that capped the number of hours the junior bankers were permitted to work each week — 80.
One turning point came last year when junior bankers were called to a pizza gathering in Chicago.
Initially perceived by some as a reward for their efforts in closing multiple deals, the meeting quickly turned sour when managers suggested that despite their extensive hours, the junior bankers should improve efficiency.
A few current junior bankers at Baird reportedly see their situation as typical for the industry, indicating they accept these conditions as standard practice, according to the Journal.
Yet former employees recall hesitancy to complain, fearing perceptions of weakness or criticism from senior staff who often referenced harsher conditions in their own careers.
In the viral posts, some Baird bankers mentioned Aaron Haney, a mid-level banker who was accused of frequently assigning demanding schedules.
In the wake of the posts, Haney was terminated by the bank, according to the Journal.
Despite criticisms, colleagues described Haney as hardworking and well-liked. Baird has not commented publicly on these allegations or the resulting management changes.
The Post has sought comment from Baird and Haney.
