Last year, Bank of America (BAC) suffered harsh criticism after its employee, Leo Lukenas III, who was 35 years old, died of a blood clot in his heart after working 100-hour workweeks at the company.
Shortly after the tragic incident, the banking industry’s workplace policies and practices were put under a microscope.
An investigation by the Wall Street Journal even found that Bank of America workers often pull all-nighters working on projects, and managers often instruct employees to lie about their hours worked to avoid scrutiny from Human Resources.
Related: JPMorgan Chase doubles down on tackling a troubling workplace trend
Overwork is a common problem in the banking industry. A 2023 survey from Wall Street Oasis found that investment banking analysts, on average, work more than 70 hours a week and go to sleep after midnight.
“Analysts and Associates in the team work extremely hard (without exaggeration, 100+ hour weeks are very common and somewhat normalized),” said a Barclays industrials analyst in the survey.
Amid the backlash last year, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase later rolled out rules to help enforce limits on the number of hours their bankers work.
For example, Bank of America introduced a timekeeping tool that requires junior bankers to share more details about how they spend their time. JPMorgan Chase also capped the work hours of its junior investment bankers at 80 hours a week.
Bank of America further cracks down on overwork
Now, it appears that Bank of America is taking further steps to tackle overwork in its workplace culture.
A pedestrian walks past a Bank of America location.
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According to a new report from the Journal, Bank of America is now requiring its senior bankers to ensure that junior bankers aren’t working hours that exceed the company’s limits.
“We want all of our junior bankers to have the best experience possible, learning from the teammates they work with and further benefiting from the career growth and development this role brings,” said a Bank of America spokesperson in a statement to the Journal.
Related: Goldman Sachs bans a strict work policy amid legal concerns
The company is also reportedly considering different ways to lighten the heavy workloads of junior bankers. One of the options includes using artificial intelligence to assist in completing tasks such as preparing financial forecasts and pitch decks, according to the Journal.
Bank of America recently made a harsh decision
The move from Bank of America comes after it cut 150 junior banker roles in its investment bank unit last week.
The job cuts were part of the bank’s annual process to target low performers, according to a recent report from Reuters. The laid-off junior bankers were also reportedly offered roles outside of investment banking. However, some declined the offer.
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The layoffs from Bank of America come during a time when the finance industry is struggling to fill roles in its sector due to a recent talent crunch. According to a recent survey from Robert Half, 87% of hiring managers for finance and accounting teams said they are struggling to find talent to fill open positions at their company.
Also, 46% said that they are specifically finding it difficult to fill financial planning and analysis roles, 43% flagged that they are struggling to fill roles in accounts payable, accounts receivable and bookkeeping, while 37% said that filling financial reporting roles have become a challenge.
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