JP Morgan Addresses Banker Well-Being by Creating a New Role

JP Morgan has taken steps to oversee the well-being of its bankers and analysts by addressing the issue of burnout among employees. The organization announced that it has created a new role to address the problem of overworking after the recent death of an employee at BoA was linked to the stress of being overworked as a result of long hours on the job. Recent deaths within major corporate spaces have reignited the debate about the working conditions that employees face on an extended basis and what employers should be doing to address them.

According to Reuters, in an internal memo sent to employees, Ryland McClendon, an employee with 14 years of experience at the organization, has been identified as the global investment banking associate and analyst leader who will oversee the working conditions within the organization henceforth.

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JP Morgan Gets Set to Address Banker Well-Being

In an attempt to tackle banker burnout, JP Morgan has now tasked McClendon with the job of overseeing the current work systems that are in place and bringing in the changes necessary to improve the work conditions for employees. According to the memo, she will “help to support [associates’ and analysts’] well-being and success, as well as equip and enable them to deliver for our business, clients and each other.”

Her role will require her to travel to the organization’s various centers and oversee the proceedings, implementing an 80-hour workweek policy for all junior employees, especially in the investment banking division. With extensive experience as the head of diversity and inclusion, she will be well-placed to understand the concerns of the employees and address their needs accurately.

Apart from JP Morgan’s burnout monitoring strategy, it is reported that the company will also hire more junior bankers to lighten the load on the existing workers who should then be able to cut down on the hours spent working. The company is said to have a workforce of about 330,000 individuals, a large number of whom work in the UK. 

The exact scale of these plans hasn’t been announced and we have no news on all the changes that McClendon will be allowed to investigate and facilitate in the long run. The organization will most likely wait a little longer to understand the changes necessary before making more formal policy decisions.

Why is JP Morgan Looking Into Analyst and Banker Well-Being Now?

Many organizations that are leaders within their industries, primarily in the banking sectors, have seen recent reports of employees falling victim to exhaustion as a result of their work. A few months ago, an employee at the Bank of America succumbed to an acute coronary artery thrombus, which is a blood clot. 

The death was cursorily linked to reports that the employee was chronically overworked and had been considering quitting his position due to his 100-hour work weeks. At the time, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon had announced his own plan to look into what they could learn from the incident.

Institutions like Wells Fargo and Ernst & Young have also seen employee deaths that have not been strictly caused by their work but have been closely linked to it. The circumstances surrounding the deaths have not painted the employers in a positive light. These incidents showcase how employees who are in pursuit of a reputable, well-paying job have to be prepared for extreme working conditions in many cases and these range from unsurmountable work pressures to extreme workplace isolation.

JP Morgan’s solution to overworking by setting a cap is a good idea and so is the plan to have a dedicated individual to oversee the enforcement of their regulations. The scale of the problem may be too large for one individual to singlehandedly keep an eye on, so further checks and policy evolutions will be required later down the line. 

Training programs, de-stressing workshops, work culture evaluations, etc. are some of the many ways that employees can look into employee well-being and these strategies need to be prioritized immediately. While these extreme cases of loss of life due to work stress don’t happen as frequently, there are thousands of others who are at risk of facing similar consequences if they are forced to work to their limits.

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