One of the more interesting bits in this is:
"But Lindley DeGarmo, 58 years old, a former director at Salomon Brothers who
left the finance industry in 1995 to become a pastor......."
One has to wonder why.
Ed
----- Original Message -----
From: Keith Hudson
To: RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION,EDUCATION ; Arthur Cordell
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 9:12 AM
Subject: Re: [Futurework] Hazard of the Trade: Bankers' Health
Arthur,
Fascinating! "Those whom the Gods wish to destroy They first make mad". This
lot reminds me of what we read about those involved in currency, reparation and
debt negotiations between the two World Wars -- the central bankers
particularly. Of the four main ones, Moreau (for France), Schacht (for
Germany), Norman (for the UK) and Strong (for the US), three of them weren't
far from being completely bizarre from time to time. Governmental policies
swung around from one extreme ot another. Even Strong, the only sane one among
them, was frequently incapacitated with illnesses which can best be described
as psychosomatic (and he died in his 50s on the operating table). In those
times even Keynes played the currency market so badly that he lost almost all
of his money (that is, about $50 million in present day terms) at one stage and
his family and friends had to hep him out. In retrospect, the Second World War
was almost inevitable.
In addition to the investment banks, given the present inanities going on
within the US Fed, and the Eurozone, precisely how are the Gods going to
destroy us this time?
Keith
At 13:02 17/02/2012, AC wrote:
From: [email protected] [
mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Steve Kurtz
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 6:16 AM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: [Ottawadissenters] Hazard of the Trade: Bankers' Health
Too bad the surviving top dogs control much of government. They are mutants
on the greed/power tail of the Bell Curve.
Steve
"For fear of being exposed, the banks prohibited her from detailing the
exact size of the study group, attrition rate and precise start date."
a.. WSJ HEALTH & WELLNESS
b.. FEBRUARY 15, 2012
Hazard of the Trade: Bankers' Health
By LESLIE KWOH
Add investment banking to the list of things that could be dangerous to
your health.
A University of Southern California researcher found insomnia, alcoholism,
heart palpitations, eating disorders and an explosive temper in some of the
roughly two dozen entry-level investment bankers she shadowed fresh out of
business school.
WSJ's Leslie Kwoh stops by Mean Street to point out that it might be time
to add investment banking to the list of activities that could be hazardous to
your health. Image: Scott Youtsey for The Wall Street Journal.
Every individual she observed over a decade developed a stress-related
physical or emotional ailment within several years on the job, she says in a
study to be published this month.
Investment banking has long been a beacon for ambitious people who crave
competition, big money, steak dinners and paid-for town-car service. The
100-hour workweek, these ironmen and ironwomen tell themselves, is just the
opening ante in a high-stakes game.
But investment bankers, salespeople and traders are only human. Under the
immense stress of their jobs, many suffer personal and emotional problems that
escalate into full-blown crises, with some bankers developing conditions that
linger long after they have left the industry.
Of course, no one is being drafted into high finance. Aspiring Wall Street
stars sign up for the punishing hours with eyes open. What's more, the study's
small size and the lack of a control group raise questions about how closely
the findings apply to the broader population of roughly 267,000 would-be
masters of the universe.
But Lindley DeGarmo, 58 years old, a former director at Salomon Brothers
who left the finance industry in 1995 to become a pastor, recalls how managers
often worked the younger hires to exhaustion. "The culture was very much that
these were dogs' bodies," he says.
John Chrin, a former managing director at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. who left
the firm in June 2009 to pursue an executive-in-residence position at Lehigh
University, recalls seeing junior staff gain 30 or 40 pounds within a couple
years on the job. When he worked at Merrill Lynch & Co., now a unit of Bank of
America Corp., he recalls that one managing director ordered a chauffeur to
turn on the air conditioning even though it was out of order, causing the car
to burst into flames. The managing director then threatened to have the driver
fired. Bank of America declined to comment.
"Maybe the job amplifies some of the tendencies that were already there,"
he says.
The USC study began a decade ago at two Wall Street banks that granted
access on the condition they remain anonymous.
Alexandra Michel, an assistant management professor at USC's Marshall
School of Business, shadowed the bankers at the officesitting next to them,
following them to meetings, mirroring their hours and even pulling
all-nightersfor more than 100 hours a week during the first year, about 80
hours a week during the second year, and then followed up with in-person
interviews.
"
By the fourth year of the study, many bankers were a mess. Some were
sleep-deprived; others developed addictions.
"
The study will be published in the next issue of the Administrative Science
Quarterly, due out later this month.
During their first two years, the bankers worked on average 80 to 120 hours
a week, but remained eager and energetic, she says. They typically arrived at 6
a.m. and left around midnight.
By the fourth year, however, many bankers were a mess, according to the
study. Some were sleep-deprived, blaming their bodies for preventing them from
finishing their work. Others developed allergies and substance addictions.
Still others were diagnosed with long-term health conditions such as Crohn's
disease, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid disorders.
One mild-mannered banking associate spoke about exploding in rage at a cab
driver after unsuccessfully attempting to open a locked door from the outside:
"I became so furious that I kept banging against the windows like crazy,
swearing at the poor guy. And then I turned around and saw that a managing
director was watching with his mouth open. I was so ashamed."
Meanwhile, company "perks" offered to employees, such as take-out meals and
car service, had gradually blurred the lines between work and life.
One vice president described work as a never-ending nightmare, waking up
every morning and wishing the day before "was just a bad dream." Another vice
president said he was so worried others might notice his drinking problem that
he would "keep losing half of what they are saying."
By the sixth year, the participants, now in their mid-30s, had split into
two camps: the 60% who remained "at war" with their bodies, and the remaining
40% who decided to prioritize their health, meaning they paid more attention to
sleep, exercise and diet and set limits on how much they allowed work to
consume them.
Roughly one-fifth of the bankers left the profession, she adds. For fear of
being exposed, the banks prohibited her from detailing the exact size of the
study group, attrition rate and precise start date.
Bankers are at higher risk for burnout and mental-health problems due to
the volatility in their profession, says Alden Cass, a New York-based clinical
psychologist who specializes in counseling Wall Street professionals. In a
study of 26 stockbrokers he conducted a decade ago, Mr. Cass found nearly
one-quarter had clinical levels of depression, more than three times the rate
among the general population. That was when the economy was booming and
compensation levels were high, he adds.
Recent turmoil on Wall Street has served to heighten stress levels. That
makes the roughly 40 patients who stream into Mr. Cass's midtown office each
week appear even more anxious and high-strung than before.
Most seek help after their personal relationships are affected by the job.
Some are addicted to prescription drugs like Adderall or Ritalin. To cope, they
resort to "depersonalization," a feeling of numbness toward the rest of the
world. A few have been suicidal.
Many have neglected their health for so long that Mr. Cass gets them to go
for physical check-ups.
"There's a reason you don't find an awful lot of old investment bankers,"
says Mr. DeGarmo, the former Salomon Brothers director. "It's a tough life."
Write to Leslie Kwoh at [email protected]
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Keith Hudson, Saltford, England http://allisstatus.wordpress.com
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