JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said that headcount at the largest US bank is set to remain unchanged for the rest of the year after climbing more than 8%.
The New York-based company said its total staffing hit 296,877 in the first quarter, up from 273,948 a year earlier. Headcount growth, along with higher compensation and wage inflation, contributed to an almost 5% growth in non-interest expenses, JPMorgan said.
Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum called the increase in headcount “BAU” — business as usual — during a conference call with reporters Friday after the bank reported quarterly results.
Wall Street has leaned on headcount reductions and hiring freezes to help contain costs amid inflation, a drop in deal activity and the possibility of a coming recession. Morgan Stanley trimmed 1,600 employees in December, while Citigroup Inc. eliminated hundreds of jobs this year. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. embarked on one of its biggest rounds of reductions in 2023, cutting about 3,200 positions.
JPMorgan executives, on Friday’s call, also discussed the bank’s decision to call its managing directors back to the office five days a week, ending a hybrid-work practice that arose during the pandemic. “We think leaders need to be accessible to their people all the time,” Dimon said. Many other employees are allowed to come in three days a week.
“We know some people weren’t following three days a week, and we want them to be there three days a week,” Dimon said. “We completely understand some people don’t want to do it. They can not do it elsewhere.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.