Bonuses for investment bankers advising companies on mergers and acquisitions are expected to drop 15% to 25% this year from 2022, according to a study by Johnson Associates.
Commercial and retail bankers at regional banks will receive bonuses that are 10% to 20% lower than the previous year, the report showed.
“Most Wall Street professionals will have to wait another year for a rebound,” said consultant Alan Johnson. "With the financial markets and overall economy struggling to find footing throughout the year, most business segments remain under pressure to keep compensation costs down.”
The report did reveal that there will be some exceptions, as investment bankers working in equity underwriting are projected to receive payouts that are 5% to 15% higher than last year, while wealth managers could receive awards that are 5% higher. Retail or commercial bankers working in large institutions could see year-end bonuses stay flat or rise about 10%.
Bonuses for debt underwriters are expected to stay flat or drop as much 10%, while payouts for equity trading could fall 5% to 10%.
Finance professionals working in fixed income trading, hedge funds, private equity firms and asset managers can expect flat bonuses or small gains or losses, according to the estimates.
Stellantis Preparing to Offer U.S. Salaried Workers Buyouts
Chrysler parent Stellantis is preparing to offer buyouts to roughly half of its U.S. white-collar employees, as the company cuts expenses amid an expensive transition to electric vehicles and potentially higher labor costs, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Stellantis chief operating officer Mark Stewart said in an all-hands meeting Monday that the company planned to offer voluntary separation packages to nonunion employees with at least five years of experience, the Journal reported.
This would be the second round of buyouts this year and is expected to be offered to about 6,400 white-collar workers. The automaker also offered about 2,500 salaried workers buyouts in April, with another round offered in October 2022.
The company said the buyouts are being offered to assist workers who would like to separate or retire from the company to pursue other interests with a favorable package of benefits.
“As the U.S. automotive industry continues to face challenging market conditions, Stellantis is taking the necessary structural actions to protect our operations,” the company said.
The buyouts are the latest move by Stellantis to protect its bottom line as it prepares for higher labor costs in the U.S. and Canada, and prepares to launch its first electric vehicles in North America.
General Motors and Ford Motor also have shed salaried workers in the past year. Auto companies have been in belt-tightening mode to guard against a possible market slowdown, as higher interest rates make car loans more expensive, the Journal noted. Carmakers also are spending heavily on battery manufacturing and other EV-related investments.
Stellantis employees are expected to have several weeks to consider the buyouts. If workers choose to accept, they would likely leave the company before the end of the year.
Massachusetts Considering Four-Day Workweek Incentive
Massachusetts legislators are considering instituting a two-year pilot program that would incentivize employers to offer four-day workweeks, HR Dive reports.
Under the proposed legislation, businesses in the state would receive tax credits for participating in the “Massachusetts Smart Work Week Pilot” and encouraging employees to work 32 hours per week without a loss in pay or benefits.
“Americans haven’t had a meaningful reduction in working hours since … the 1930s,” Rep. Dylan Fernandes (D-Falmouth), a co-sponsor of the bill, said during the hearing. “Too many people are not just working five days a week; they are often tethered to their devices and phones and email and are working significantly more. Americans … are overworked.”
California and Pennsylvania are other states that have considered similar four-day workweek incentive plans. California’s bill was halted in May and Pennsylvania’s bill to incentivize a four-day, 32-hour workweek is still under consideration.
Overseas, the UK’s four-day workweek trial received “overwhelmingly” positive feedback and 56 of the 61 organizations that participated said they would continue testing, while some said they had planned to make a permanent change.
Thousands of Starbucks Workers Strike on ‘Red Cup Day’
Thousands of unionized Starbucks workers went on strike Thursday on a busy sales day for the coffee chain in a bid to bring the company back to the negotiating table, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Baristas walked out on the company’s annual ‘Red Cup Day’ promotion for the second straight year, according to Starbucks Workers United, the union representing them. During the promotion, Starbucks gives customers a free reusable cup when they order a holiday drink.
The union said it wanted the company to bargain over pay raises, increased staffing and other concerns. Starbucks recently announced it was increasing wages for its hourly employees by at least 3% beginning Jan. 1, 2024.
Starbucks said Thursday morning that it was aware of the move by the union which impacted a few dozen stores.
Workers at about 360 of the company’s roughly 9,000 U.S. company-owned stores have voted to unionize. Starbucks Workers United said the strike was its biggest ever. Unionized baristas are a small portion of the company’s workforce but have gained traction since 2021, when workers in Buffalo, New York voted to form the first labor union at a Starbucks cafe.
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