RIP Tech Associate at Jefferies -Wallstreetgossip

"an Associate on the tech team at JEFF died today.

Nothing confirmed from a cause of death perspective, but had been pulling crazy hours for month+ getting absolutely grilled. Consensus is dying from health compliacations due to the hours

Would like to get the word out. Haven't seen anything hit social or news yet"

-wallstreetgossip Instagram Page

175 Comments
 

it was sad the first two times it happen in the past year. “Sad” is for unexpected, unavoidable deaths because of ignorance.

This is now infuriating because there’s no excuse for ignorance any more

 

Would be highly irresponsible of the instagram account with 100k followers to make this up. Sadly it seems to be true

 
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Saddest part is that there will be a job posting tomorrow for the role

 
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He prob won’t even get a instagram post. Industry is cooked

 

So truly sad. As the saying goes, no dollar can compensate dying or severely damaging your health on the job.

Not the first, sadly not the last. How many are needed, for proper working conditions to be implemented. Yes, it is a demanding job, but proper safelines, time for recovery, and less toxic culture are needed here.

Some may argue " yeah, but they are adults, if they can't bear it they should leave or say something". That's unfortunately not the case, and we all know it. Oftentimes more and more is asked from employees that's healthy (heck, even necessary!), particularly from young eager juniors.

It is everybody's responsibility. but foremost from the leadership and seniors. There is no way to deny this. And there are many assholes driving teams like carts of oxes.

And btw is also harmful for the company, it's people and the industry as a whole. Some level of self regulation should be in place...

 

At Jefferies, can confirm it has gotten out of hand. Horrible right now. Hopefully someone does something to fix this. 

The firms teams are stretched too thin, timelines are increasingly aggressive, and there’s a very noticeable lack of consideration for junior employees quality of life. My friends at other banks can’t believe when they hear what’s going on at Jefferies. 

 

They’re purposely out of touch to justify their loserish behavior (and losing results) 

 

Just wait till end of the year when half the Houston office drops dead. You know things are bad when people are talking about jumping out of the window or calculating how to payback the predatory clawbacks

 

Once this breaks in major news, senior “leadership” at other banks will be forced to do their little skit meeting. Looking around like “wow someone should fix this!” “If only someone can do something!” Rather than taking a look in the mirror and deciding to actually take steps to address it. I do truly believe things will never change. There could be 10 of these this year and MDs will still have their teams working till 4AM even on pitches. 

 

There’s been a long noticed problem with MDs at Jeff. Complete disregard for well being of juniors. Brutal.

 

I was a Asso and VP on the tech team at JEF before. I once was sitting with an MD and said "we should just show a realistic timeline for the CIM delivery because getting a draft in two weeks will cause the team to be here until 4am every day."(we already had the mandate and this was a kickoff deck). "Why dont we give an extra week to have a better draft and so the guys are fully burnt." --- I was told they will be here for 18 months and get a good PE job, they will be fine, push them. I did not do well in that group because I tend to not like to see 22 year olds gain 20lbs in a year and get addicted to stimulants. I also tend to care about others well being and my personal gain at others expense is not something I live by. I got out of there in the nick of time and am now thriving.
RIP the Asso, didnt know him but know what that culture can make you do and what you have to give up to have JEF on your resume.  

 

I cannot understand the maniacal urgency in IB/finance. There are few real deadlines that need to happen, most of the deadlines/dates are arbitrary. Our jobs is not so critical that if it doesn't get done someone dies, but clearly there's a real chance that someone could get hurt or die if we normalize this insane mindset and culture of work has hard as possible to hit an unreasonable deadline. Pathetic of Partners, MDs, EDs, VPs, etc. that lack the empathy to recognize and prevent this.

 

The banks are selling what is more or less a commodity product to corporate executives going through major changes in their organization. It's not like one bank vs. another is going to be mind blowingly better at advising on a merger or an IPO. IBs are not selling high end business software or oil drilling machinery or something.

So it ends up being relationship driven and you're going to hire the bankers that seem to care more about your specific organizational problem, that answers calls at all hours, that thinks ahead and provides some analysis you didn't know you needed. That incentivizes them to work crazy hours and bend over backwards.

Let's analogize it to dating. Imagine you're going through a big life event (broke up recently, moved to a new city) and you're talking to a few different girls on the apps. You're not desperate but you are a bit lonely and you're not getting any younger. You're going to be much more likely to want to keep going out with the girl that sends you sweet texts every day and offers to cook you dinner, all else equal.

TL;DR: The hours are bad exactly because what IBs are selling is NOT about life and death at all. I work in enterprise SaaS sales now. I promise our top salespeople work better hours and the stuff that they're selling is generally more complex than what IBs sell.

 

Wtf is this. Another person dies and we can do nothing but wish for change and make jokes on WSO. This is so sad. I saw another post about someone half-joking about committing suicide because they can't break in. It's like, damned if we do damned if we don't. 

Does anyone have any serious suggestions for how we can effect change? What are we supposed to do? Remember the WSJ article a few months back on caffeine, nicotine and Adderall abuse on the street? Yea it was funny and made me laugh too but it should have been a bigger sign after the death of the BofA employee. Now someone else died, and I am at a loss. I don't know how to push back against my hours when my whole group puts in 100 / week. Why is this normal now? What can we actually do?

 

The fact that investment banking and Chinese factories are some of the only jobs where people can die from overwork reveals there is something clearly wrong with the investment banking business model. As an investor yes it’s helpful when bankers are responsive. However, intentionally understaffing a team to eek out the extra advisory fees instead of hiring enough people to get the work done is simply unethical. These are smart, motivated young professionals in the early innings of their career. Churning and burning through people like this isn’t right.

 

Spot on. As an investor, I start to hate the Mads, if I notice this. I was once in the shoes of the Jr's, and as a client you can clearly see when they are being worked out. Sending an email in the evening does not necessarily mean it should be answered immediately. It means I had a few minutes to shoot it then. The seniors need to get a grip and read better the signs. Make themselves strong for their team. And also take hits for the team here and there. The client does not necessarily know, on how many deals they are staffed, how burnt they come from the past deal, etc.etc. but the client surely will remember, if the jr on their deal is the one on the news.

So pointless and vacuous

 

They can’t do it. A lot of senior bankers (especially at BB) are not very bright and got there through a mix of staying / brute force / politics. They do not care, efficiency does not cross their minds ever. 

 

Individually, juniors have no power. Collectively, they have significant leverage.  (I know, I know, there are dozens ready to replace each “fungible” employee).  Juniors across the street should hold a coordinated walk-out or a sick day to make the point.  Of course, it only works if everyone does it (people would inevitably chicken out or some hardos would still show up).  

Imagine a day where no analysts showed up for work in the entire industry. Game theorizing folks would blow it up, though. 

Sad state of affairs. 

 
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Most Helpful

I used to work with him at Moelis and was lucky enough to be considered a friend. Top quality dude and a really great sense of humor. He was the first person I called when an old MD clocked that person in Brooklyn or whenever I heard some Moelis gossip on the street. Kinda gutted that my last conversation with him was about onlyfans girls and bonuses but I think he's probably laughing somewhere about how ridiculous it was.

I know we want to vilify the guys we worked for and objectively they're difficult people but I think they really did value him given they poached him out of Moelis to come to Dallas. Want to give them the benefit of the doubt given what I know about the situation but I hope if it comes to light that they're the real reason they're blackballed from the industry for the rest of their careers. 

Let's pour one out for the guy and I hope more people share stories about how fucking hilarious he was since the world should hear his story. 

 

Also used to work at Moelis (pre-verticalization). LC/NB were notoriously the worst humans at the firm. Every other pool staffing was from these two clowns who would work you like a dog for a pitch they had no shot of winning. Their revenue generation to burned out analysts most be close to being the lowest across the entire industry. Definition of absolute incompetence who needed 100+ pages for a pitch since they couldn't impress with their intellect or insights. Carter was a great guy who always had a smile on his face. he will be missed. 

 
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No he doesn’t, he looks like a loser nerd.
 

Edit: To whoever gave me MS, take those kneepads off. The loser Jefferies MD with the receding hairline ain’t gonna fuck you little bro. 

Nah
 
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This hits very close to home because I did Jefferies Houston as an associate for 2 years. If the hours and expectations for Dallas office are any where close to this then this isn’t too surprising. 
 

This seems to be a jefferies wide problem and not just certain teams. Probably the M&A team in nyc is the only one where you can have somewhat of a life assuming you aren’t FIG focused.

The particularly disappointing thing at jefferies was that VPs never stood up for the juniors. In one particular instance I had a week where I worked past 5am on 3 consecutive days so I decided to do skip an office Thursday happy hour  (this is 2021 end so it wasn’t that wild to be wfh to begin with) to get some sleep. Apparently that was not appreciated. I was also told later that the director on the team called me ‘soft’.

On another occasion, 3 deals were blowing up on same time and I brought this up with the staffer. Again no understanding or response.

i finally lost it and just screamed at the VP and rage quit. Had to give back a chunk of the bonus and even signing. Took a year back and am much happier at a different shop 

 

This hits very close to home because I did Jefferies Houston as an associate for 2 years. If the hours and expectations for Dallas office are any where close to this then this isn’t too surprising. 
 

This seems to be a jefferies wide problem and not just certain teams. Probably the M&A team in nyc is the only one where you can have somewhat of a life assuming you aren’t FIG focused.

The particularly disappointing thing at jefferies was that VPs never stood up for the juniors. In one particular instance I had a week where I worked past 5am on 3 consecutive days so I decided to do skip an office Thursday happy hour  (this is 2021 end so it wasn’t that wild to be wfh to begin with) to get some sleep. Apparently that was not appreciated. I was also told later that the director on the team called me ‘soft’.

On another occasion, 3 deals were blowing up on same time and I brought this up with the staffer. Again no understanding or response.

i finally lost it and just screamed at the VP and rage quit. Had to give back a chunk of the bonus and even signing. Took a year back and am much happier at a different shop 

If it is who I think it is, the VP in this situation is a masochistic doormat for LC/NB with blackholes for eyes. That duo is a walking HR nightmare and I am not even certain they generate revenue consistently enough to outweigh their risk. 

 

This hits very close to home because I did Jefferies Houston as an associate for 2 years. If the hours and expectations for Dallas office are any where close to this then this isn’t too surprising. 
 

This seems to be a jefferies wide problem and not just certain teams. Probably the M&A team in nyc is the only one where you can have somewhat of a life assuming you aren’t FIG focused.

The particularly disappointing thing at jefferies was that VPs never stood up for the juniors. In one particular instance I had a week where I worked past 5am on 3 consecutive days so I decided to do skip an office Thursday happy hour  (this is 2021 end so it wasn’t that wild to be wfh to begin with) to get some sleep. Apparently that was not appreciated. I was also told later that the director on the team called me ‘soft’.

On another occasion, 3 deals were blowing up on same time and I brought this up with the staffer. Again no understanding or response.

i finally lost it and just screamed at the VP and rage quit. Had to give back a chunk of the bonus and even signing. Took a year back and am much happier at a different shop 

Expand

If it is who I think it is, the VP in this situation is a masochistic doormat for LC/NB with blackholes for eyes. That duo is a walking HR nightmare and I am not even certain they generate revenue consistently enough to outweigh their risk. 

Why am I not surprised.. Not rainmakers = higher anxiety + stress = toxic VPs and up

 
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The general duty clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act) requires employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm. If excessive work hours created a demonstrable health hazard—such as extreme stress leading to a fatal outcome—a case could potentially be made.

File the Complaint

You can file an OSHA complaint in several ways:

Online

  • Visit the OSHA website: OSHA File a Complaint
  • Complete the online form with the required details:
    • Employer's name and address
    • Description of the hazardous condition (e.g., excessive hours leading to health risks)
    • Specific dates and times of the alleged violations
    • Information about the employee's death, if applicable

By Phone:

  • Call your local OSHA office or the OSHA hotline at 1-800-321-6742.
  • Provide the details verbally. This is useful for urgent cases.

By Mail or Fax:

  • Download and complete the OSHA complaint form
  • Submit it to your local OSHA office by mail or fax. Use OSHA's office locator to find the nearest office
 

OSHA Manhattan Office

 Manhattan Area Office

201 Varick Street RM. 908
New York,  NY 10014

 (212) 620-3200
 (212) 620-4121

 

Threatening violence is uncalled for—resignation exists for a reason—it's not as if the pay causes African-level starvation or something

 

All this talk of DEI while Beckies get a free pass. No longer this is 2025

 

Some comments were talking about if someone was gonna shoot up the joint.

 

A disgrace. As someone who has been in the industry for 10+ years this is really frustrating. Finance is filled to the brim with managers who lack common sense, empathy, and the emotional intelligence necessary to lead effectively. Instead, they lean on toxic behaviours like glorifying dumb facetime and passing off ridiculous hours as "stoicism". Leaders in finance don't do more because they don't care. The juniors should just walk out. This is getting out of hand.

 

What will it take for MDs / seniors to let up enough as to not have their juniors die from being overworked? You’d think it would stop at 1, but since it hasn’t stopped at 1, will it ever? Will they ever be held liable or bear any of the repercussions? What will it take for this industry to change?

The guy is in a better place but his family has a huge hole, his friends won’t ever get to hangout with him, call him or text him, he won’t have kids or see them grow up. All due to pressure to get some work done. So sad.

Few things are worth dying for and most certainly investment banking does not come anywhere near the top of the list.

 

It will never stop, they don’t care. Trust me when I tell you most of them would be willing to sacrifice a lot more than a junior banker for them to land a large mandate.

 

How do we fix the industry (this is coming from an analyst as well)?

I think we certainly need way more accountability against seniors who burn capacity and don't generate revenue - they hurt juniors and their entire teams and should be axed more quickly. However, I also understand MDs can have down years and they need to be given a leash.

I also understand firms' apprehension towards hour caps / softening up and letting people say "they need a break" after a heavy workload because then it becomes something subjective that the worst 5% of bankers will abuse the shit out of. I've seen in my group how some people abuse WFH policies like mad and shun work left right and centre.

I do think a solution is not being afraid to hire another analyst. It is so fucking cheap to hire an analyst, yet groups will be reluctant to spare the entire junior team by offloading 80+ hours of capacity onto a new individual. I don't get it.

$100 mm+ in revenue in a group and they won't spend the $300k in total to onboard an analyst so their star juniors don't quit (fucking the group even more in 6 months).

 

What a tragedy. RIP. 

I just read that someone from the staffer team responded to Litquidity's story that people on the COO/staffer team cried when they were informed of his death and that they had been doing their best. What a weak and spineless response. You're doing your best to keep your employees alive? In case anyone from that team is reading this;

You are not running a f7cking chicken farm.

Young people don’t just drop dead in every other office building.

This is the result of weeks, most likely months, of inhumane working conditions. Your lawyers will deny any wrongdoing, and your firm will walk away from this. But deep down, you know you could have done something to prevent this.. Your crocodile tears aren’t worth anything to his closest who lost a son/brother/friend.

And for anyone hiring advisors. The change starts with you! 

 

This is truly the only way. To those who hire advisors: if you see things getting out of control please say something even if it is just in passing. Senior bankers are so spineless and were born to serve you that it is truly the only way. 
 

 

It was actually a great point.

Sometimes I don't feel safe going to work in Texas because of it. 

Anyone can carry, and with mental health only getting worse and banking being complacent, it's a real concern. 

 

Half the offices in Houston and Dallas don’t have any forms of security… you do the math

 
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Controversial

Points to ponder. Why is it that every recent casualty in IB due to work related stress happens to be a young “male” junior? Where is the DEI now? These greedy MDs are screwing male juniors to favor females. All work / life balance measures are only implemented diligently if the underlying is a female junior. 

 

More likely reason they're all men is that most of these incidents are happening to people late 20s or older - the years have already taken a toll. I don't know about you but by the time I was in my mid-20s in banking the women were like 5% of all the bankers. Not sure DEI is the source of this - I saw the female analysts work as late as the men when they were 22. They just didn't have the same social pressures to continue so they got out sooner. It can be a brutal job, if you don't feel like your self-worth is tied up in continuing, maybe you just don't. 

 

Seems like MDs are realizing it's easier to hit their gender quotas by killing their male juniors than to hiring more women.

 

I’ve worked 4-6 hours more than female peers every weekday since I hit the desk plus some gnarly weekends as well. Our bonuses will be the same anyways so I’m getting paid like 40% less per hour. That’s why I’m leaving this industry I’m tired of being used.

 

Idk what others think but, with David Solomon talking about AI being able to do 95% of the work of a 6 people team, I feel like news like this is going to force banks to really think more deeply about corporate structure and investment banking entirely.

There’s a tonne of unnecessary abuse like this, coupled with ungodly comp costs that could be easily alleviated with AI and a better grasp of these newer technologies. Nonstop 90 hr weeks and piling stress is a recipe for disaster that won’t just “go away” unless something is done :/

 

I think it may take a while to come to fruition. My guess is the majority of senior bankers would think that a 23 year old human analyst is more trustworthy than AI. It won’t be easy to switch.

Well where are they sourcing it from?!

These numbers don’t look right! 

We need to tell the story better! 

Can we do something like (incoherent ask)
 

 

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