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Junior bankers at Goldman Sachs say they face “inhumane” conditions at the investment bank, including 100-hour work weeks and “abuse” from colleagues that have severely affected their mental health.
Responses from survey participants – 13 investment banking analysts in the United States – highlighted the grueling demands of first-year analysts, a cohort that includes some of the brightest recruits hired each year by Goldman.
The survey, presented to the bank in the form of a slide show in February, is now circulating on Twitter. Its content suggests that at least one division of Goldman Sachs is still grappling with the long hours and high-pressure culture that was revealed when a 22-year-old bank analyst committed suicide in 2015.
The 11-page presentation features “Selected Analyst Quotes,” in which graduates describe an office environment reminiscent of scenes from HBO’s recent fictional TV series Industry, which depicts the lives of new employees at the London branch of an American bank.
One said, “There was a time when I didn’t eat, shower, or do nothing but work from morning until after midnight.”
“The sleep deprivation, the treatment by seasoned bankers, the mental and physical stress… I have been in foster care and it is arguably worse,” said another anonymous contributor to the survey.
Sources within the bank have confirmed that the survey was conducted by junior analysts themselves and presented internally before it began circulating online.
This will raise the question of whether banks have been content with lip service to resolving certain demands in the workplace. In 2013, Moritz Erhardt, 21, an intern at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, was found dead in a shower in his London apartment. He had worked 72 hours straight and died of a seizure.
The 2015 death of a Goldman Sachs analyst was that of Sarvshreshth Gupta, who complained of working 100 hours in a week and working through the night.
Survey analysts said they worked an average of 95 hours a week, but up to 105 hours in mid-February when the poll was taken. The group said they only got five hours of sleep a night after going to bed around 3 a.m.
The majority said they had also been the victim of workplace abuse. A small proportion were frequently sworn in or shouted at, while at least half were ignored in meetings, or faced unwarranted public criticism, they said.
The whole group said the harsh conditions had “negatively impacted” their relationships with friends and family and severely affected their mental and physical health. Most said they would quit their jobs within six months if conditions did not improve.
“This is beyond the level of ‘hard work’, it is inhumane abuse,” said one of the survey participants.
Commenting on the survey, Goldman said, “We recognize that our people are very busy because business is strong and volumes are at historic levels. A year after the start of Covid, people are of course quite long, and that is why we are listening to their concerns and taking several steps to address them. “
It is understood that Goldman has engaged with analysts in the poll. He said he was also transferring staff internally to help his busier departments and had a no-work policy on Saturdays.
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