There is a battle over vaccinations on Wall Street and across Corporate America. Some companies require their employees to get their shots—and others don’t. There are corporations that make their white-collar workers at headquarters get jabbed, whereas the folks on the floors of fulfillment centers and warehouses aren’t ordered to get inoculated.
Fox Business Network reported that brokers and traders on the floor of the iconic New York Stock Exchange “are up in arms about the exchange’s new Covid-19 mandates.” Floor traders are the people you see on television buying and selling stocks for their clients and themselves when the financial news reports on a story about the stock market.
Back in the day, the floors were packed with traders pushing and shoving to get a ticket in for a trading order. Now, it’s a Potemkin village with relatively few participants trading. Like everything else, trading has largely moved online from the physical world.
The die-hard traders said they felt “both blindsided” and treated as “second-class citizens,” as they were demanded to get vaccinated, while their office counterparts don’t have to follow the same edict. The folks in headquarters are on the honor system, in regards to their status.
The floor traders may be exempted due to religious or medical reasons. They need to take Covid-19 tests three times a week at their own expense. It’s a not-so-subtle way to inconvenience people into taking their shots.
New York-based investment bank Goldman Sachs previously required its bankers, brokers, traders and other staff members to inform the bank of their vaccination status. According to an internal memo on this subject, it said, “Registering your vaccination status allows us to plan for a safer return to the office for all of our people, as we continue to abide by local public health measures. As a result, it is mandatory that you submit your vaccination status on the Canopy app [the bank’s internal portal for employees], whether or not you are vaccinated.” Goldman employees need to report their status,“They do not need to show proof of vaccination, but will be asked to record the date they received their shots and the maker of the vaccine.”
Goldman’s rival, Morgan Stanley, told its bankers, brokers and traders that workers who haven’t been vaccinated won’t be allowed to return to their New York City and Westchester County offices. The bank’s employees in the New York area were previously called upon to attest to their vaccination status by July 1.
On a LinkedIn post, Sara Wechter, the head of human resources at Citigroup, wrote, “Starting September 13, all colleagues at our [New York City headquarters] and other offices in the Tri-State area, as well as Chicago, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, will be expected to return at least two days a week and vaccination is required. Given the increased number of employees returning to these buildings, and the Delta variant in the U.S., we are taking this approach to ensure a safe workplace.” Wechter added, “For our colleagues working at our branches, we strongly encourage them to get vaccinated and will require rapid testing and wearing of masks for all colleagues.”
According to reports, it seems that Wall Street firms, such as BlackRock, Deutsche Bank, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Jefferies are nudging their employees toward getting jabbed. For those who haven’t gotten their shots, the banks are making their lives difficult with testing and questioning.
Reuters reported that sources inside the banks say, “There remains a vocal group of employees who do not want to get shots for health or religious reasons, as well as some who feel that any mandate infringes on their personal rights.” Adam Galinsky, a Columbia Business School professor who specializes in leadership, decision-making and ethics, said about the matter, “The banks are walking a fine line as they try to encourage staff to get vaccinated and return to offices, while avoiding backlash from them, as well as legal, political and headline risk.”
According to Indeed, the large job aggregation site, “As of August 7, the share of job postings per million that require vaccinations were up 90% compared to a month earlier.” The job board noticed that “vaccination requirements in job postings are increasing across a wide range of sectors.”
Some workers don’t have much of a choice, as their employers have already made the decision. Facebook, Google, Twitter, CNN, the Washington Post, United Airlines, Microsoft, Uber, Netflix, Walgreens, Tyson, Walmart and Disney told all or a segment of their workforce to get their shots. It makes sense for companies to come down on a strict policy, as they face considerable risks and liabilities. If a person contracts or spreads Covid-19, a lawsuit against the firm may follow.
A study from Qualtrics asked people what they’d do if their employer mandated getting vaccinated. The results clearly show the chasm between Americans. About 44% of workers said that they would consider leaving their jobs if they were forced to get their shots. Around 38% of workers would consider leaving their current employer if the organization did not enact a vaccine mandate.
Despite the tussle on the trading floor, Wall Street professionals will likely see a big bonus this year. The New York Post reports that due to a record high stock market, robust trading activities and flurry of investment banking deals, Wall Street employees “can now expect double-digit bumps to their year-end bonuses, according to newly released data from compensation consulting firm Johnson Associates.” The bonuses could be 35% higher than last year’s payout. The fortunes have been so great on the street that young bankers are being lavished with over $100k in base salaries, plus lush bonuses. For many, the compensation is worth the vaccination.
Source: Forbes
