Goldman Sachs staff threaten to quit over ‘inhumane’ working conditions

Junior bankers at Goldman Sachs have claimed that they are working 95 hours a week on average and have threatened to quit unless their working conditions improve.

An internal survey found that some slept only five hours a night and felt their relationships and physical and mental health had suffered as a result of their working patterns.

Three-quarters said they had been victims of workplace abuse, 83% felt they experience “excessive monitoring or micromanagement”, and 17%  frequently experience shouting and swearing.

All respondents said they face unrealistic deadlines and a majority complained they have been shunned or ignored at meetings.

They warned that they would likely leave within six months unless their working conditions improve, and recommended that the investment bank sets a maximum 80-hour work week, with no work on Saturday or after 9pm on Friday.

One respondent said: “I didn’t come into this job expecting a 9am-5pm’s, but I also didn’t expect consistent 9am-5am’s either.”

Another said: “There was a point where I was not eating, showering or doing anything else other than working from morning until after midnight.”

The group of first-year analysts presented their findings to management in February. Some described the working conditions at the firm as “inhumane”.

Goldman Sachs said in a statement: “We recognise that our people are very busy, because business is strong and volumes are at historic levels.

“A year into Covid, people are understandably quite stretched, and that’s why we are listening to their concerns and taking multiple steps to address them.”

Since being presented with the results of the survey, Goldman Sachs said it had taken steps to address employee burnout among its teams.

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A recent survey by Wildgoose found that more than half of UK employees have been expected to work outside of regular working hours during lockdown, contributing to many people reporting feelings of burnout.

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