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Subscribe to RSSProtesters are occupying Wall Street and points beyond, and many investors may be looking sadly at their most recent statements after a couple of erratic months in the markets.
But a new survey finds that most Wall Street professionals are still expecting their bonuses to be the same or higher than last year.
The survey of nearly 1,100 Wall Street professionals, conducted in the last few weeks by the jobs website eFinancial Careers, found that about six in 10 financial services professionals expect their bonus will be the same or higher than last year.
That is down slightly from 2010, when seven in 10 expected their bonus would be on par with or fatter than the year previous.
Still, almost everyone surveyed was expecting some sort of bonus, even if it’s a bit lower than last year. Only 8 percent said they weren’t expecting any bonus this year.
Many investors and everyday Americans have grown frustrated with sluggish economic growth, persistently high unemployment and topsy-turvy financial markets.
Wall Street has not been completely immune to those hard times, but the eFinancialCareers noted that the bonus culture remains intact.
“Even amid an atmosphere of slower recruitment activity and targeted layoffs, Wall Street will continue to be a pay-for-performance culture,” the report said.
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Yes, do not be too greedy. Their employees are not invisible. Take care of employees' salaries and benefits, and they still have awesome bonus, but not too greedy.
Nope, they will take the whole bonus and not hire anyone...............
Wall Street expects a bonus.
For the rest of us, that's spelled differently. Two words. Bone US.
Eric, if they are getting the job done with the staff that they have, why would you expect them to hire additional employees?
I still don't think they understand the definition of bonus. The markets are still down, the economy is still down, basically what do they expect to get a "bonus" for? Showing up to work?
Brilliant.
The bonus structure of Wall Street is one of the top five reasons we had the 2008 crisis (and why we still suffer).
Adam Smith is rolling over in his grade.
Do you Conservatives realize that Adam Smith said the wealthy should pay a higher percentage of federal taxes then everyone else? Read Wealth of Nations. Smith said, the rich should pay more, because they benefited from the federal infrastructure (defense, welfare, roads, regulation).
Since corporations are legally considered people a CEO should be charged with murder when one goes bankrupt.
I think in states with capital punishment giving them a literal golden parachute and pushing them off a building would be fitting.
Why not, Congress votes itself a raise and bonus every year and the job perks are out of sight. When you add up all of the perks, job benefits, bonus kick backs from lobbyists and salary the political pundits are raking in the bucks. They make the Wall Street people look like peons.
The Wall Street protestors should move over in front of the White House.
Good thing for Congress it's not "pay-for-performance" like the rest of the working world!
No, the protestors are in the right place. If they were to picket elsewhere it should be Congress.
There should be demonstrations both wall street and congress.
I agree, Anita. The people who work hard and get along without government handouts should protest until the cops remove the losers who are blocking public thorougfares with their annoying whining
If Congress had done it's job Wall Street wouldn't be the problem, but when you hand Wall Street firms free money, with no strings how can you suggest they change. Protesting in front of the Houses of the Legislature is useless, the politicians aren't going to write laws concerning kick-backs. Too much of their money is from kick-backs from lobbyists.
So your justification for the wall street greed is because the politicians are greedy and corrupt.With logic like that,it is no wonder this country is is such dire shape.There is no justification for anyone making the kind of money that wall streeters and ploiticians do.Neither one of them contributes as much to this country as a good hardworking average joe does.
Congress not worry about the rich. they r aorry about their riches.
Don't you really mean the protestors need to move to The United States Congress since that is where those who vote on their own pay raises and bonuses are headquartered.
pay-for-performance culture? what happened when they failed? still got bonuses which is the problem boys!
The bonus is directly proportional to the number of Americans you've screwed in the past year.
Gee, Eric, I'm not rich, but I did build a comfortable retirement portfolio for myself over a long career, and quite frankly, nobody on Wall Street has screwed me. As a matter of fact, they've done a fine job of preserving my modest holdings during a period when the whole economic system has been under attack by our own government admiistration.
They have not succeeded yet but they are working on it. There are still wage earners in the economy. There is still a little money in the economy that is not gambled on Wall Street.
All that money 'going to waste' instead of to bonuses ...
Actually Spider, the government did that "fine job" of preserving your holdings by bailing out companies that should have gone under because of the idiotic 'too big to fail' principle.
Thank you DarkShadow1701
I to have built a nice retiremtent portfolio, however, during the recession I watched a good junk of it disappear. They have not "earned" their bonus. Isn't that what the right wing wants. People shouodn't get the money if they don't earn it?
Listen up Wall St.
There's going to be some changes around here.
We Are The 99%
We Are Legion
Expect Us
Will next year be the "American Spring"?
It's already American Fall
... or America Fell?
not 99%. you're the 47% that the liberal movement has made dependent on government. stop trying to sound like you speak for me because you most assuredly don't.
stop the madening
Only if you admit that YOU only speak for YOURSELF. (i.e. The .0.00000003%)
STM,
You are also part of the 99% as is almost everyone posting here. No, everyone that posts here is part of the 99% because I cannot image a CEO posting on News Vine when they are to busy sitting on their money waiting for it to hatch like a chicken egg.
PAY FOR PERFORMANCE!....ARE you kidding!?
Actually, it's the same reasoning behind paying a prostitue.
Wow, you guys fell for the Obama spin of "Hate the Rich". Well, go ahead and punish them and see what you end up with.
May I have another bowl o' gruel, Master Towne? I've cleaned the stable twice now.
Towne,
So tell me, what are we going to end up with? More of the same? More people getting rich off the backs of the working class and poor? Companies downgrading to only increase their profit margin? People making bad decisions and getting rewarded for them? It's not about hate the rich and stop already with the Obama references... Get a clue dude...
Sure! We'll end up with... er, better roads, better schools, trade equity, environmental protection, health benefits for working people, better care for our soldiers - money flowing through the economy instead of sitting in investment accounts that neither create jobs nor pay taxes.
Nobody HATES the rich - we hate the GREED.
Big corporations don't create jobs - they create dividends, which do nothing to stimulate the economy.
No one hate the rich. We hate the idea they send jobs oversea to be made for 2 cent and ask us to pay 10 dollars for it. Please don't say the rich create jobs. That was said before and what did they creare. 2010 GOP ran on jobs. Instead they went after the Gays , parent-parenthood education and unions. They said tart did not work. Maybe not for all, but union rately GM contract and their are hiring In Tenn, bringing jobs back from Mexico. Can I get a high five for them.
The truth is that consumers create jobs, by creating demand for goods and services.
70% of this country's economy is consumer driven.
When the means to consume is taken away from 99% of the population, there's not much room to create demand OR resulting jobs. That top 1% would be wise to recognize that the middle class is the source of their wealth.
We are the job creators.
Towne
Wow...another low-esteem sycophant telling us to watch out for the all-mighty "rich!"
Towne,
Knees that are not sore like yours from kissing the azz of the wealthy.
Radical Centrist
"See what you end up with?" You have got to be kidding. I think the" see what you get ",chapter has been published. We are now working on the chapter where the people wearing the white hats form up a posse and build a gallows. Due process is not punishment. It is the law. Look out wall street, a run on the banks is next, followed by shredded credit cards and the rise of small community lending institutions run by the people, of the people and for the people. Justice and dignity will be the final chapter.
And we the taxpayers bailed them out. They are laughing all the way to the bank at the stupidity of our elected officials who not only gave them money but required no accountability for it. Great work Congress.
Of course they do - they don't have their heads in the real world, the greedy SOB's!
What I heard from Paul Ryan yesterday and another republican representative this morning (sorry did not catch his name) is the following: If taxes are reduced, regulations limited and there is certainty in the business environment, then businesses will start to invest again and everything will be honky dorey. When asked (this morning) how we could be certain that if businesses got these lower taxes, regulation and certainty in the business environment that they will start expanding and hiring again, there was no answer.
If one wants a certain business environment, then one is not looking for a free economic system. The engine of a free economy is risk taking and adapting to the environment. Regulations could be streamlined and modernized, but industry and business is not overburdened by too many regulations addressing safety, humane work conditions, environmental conditions and illegal business practices.
Conservatives have different ideas for what should be done, but they are no more certain or better than liberal ideas.
Remember repub sign a paper saying they will not rise taxes. If the do they will lose their standing.
We haven't got a bonus in 2 years a raise of more then 3/4% in 3 years. My words to Wall Street. F off!
It's not a matter of Right or Left, Conservative or Liberal. This country is caught in a straight jacket woven from twisted metrics, misaligned priorities, and an abject lack of accountability. Make bets on financial "instruments" big enough to bring down economies at national scale, and if you "win", you get rich, and if you lose - you not only pass the loss to the "unmotivated", you may well get richer!
The derivative czars are transparent to those of us that know our group and quantum field theory mathematics. It shouldn't require that knowledge and skill, however, to see that betting on differentials and momentum should be criminal. Investing in enterprise, with a requirement for judicious assessement of potential and risk and the means to weather losses as well as harvest gains is what a market is about, not shaving the margin from phase differences between distributions made from populations of hundreds of millions...
Fact: America is quickly falling behind other nations, at an accelerating rate, in key measures of knowledge and competence. How is it anti-American to support investment in transportation, energy, education, mental and physical health and well-being? How is it American to say what is happening now is "free enterprise"?
To Herman Cain (only because he made the comment, others are equally deserving of this comment): The so-called 99% are not complaining about the success of others. They're decrying the lack of responsbility and accountability when the Wizards' spells backfire!
To the protestors: Take a shower, and shed the 60's nostalgia for free love and anarchy. That isn't helping...Focus on the issues, and use the data! This is too easy...
I realize you are a true believer and are trying to do something good. I am not here to make fun of you or your position but I do have something I would like you to consider. What is really at driving this seems to be a basic anger at the unfairness of our system. But, like morality, fairness is not something you can legislate or regulate through government imposed meddling. My genuine belief is that this problem will only be overcome through the development of more small, local businesses who thrive without government imposed bureaurocracy, redtape, regulations and failed attempts at social engineering.
Sebastian-2869791 Repub have 2 stricks with No taxes and making sure Obama do one term. If they taxes they will be hitting their pocket book.They could care less about the people for the people. Then they will make sure I go to the poor house.
jt - Where on earth did I say anything about republicans, democrats, taxes or Obama? You either didn't read the post or have problems understanding the English language. Your hatred prevents you from being enlightened on this issue. Freedom from government, which is the only thing I advocated in my post would be trully empowering to people. Instead, we the people, are enslaved in a bureaucratic nightmare by politicians who exempt themselves from the B.S. they piously heap on us in addition to requiring one to be a lawyer in order to figure it all out. Stop jumping to conclusions for which you have no basis in fact.
Right. And when it works, it makes a few people rich. But one thing it never does is create more jobs.
....their attitude...bolstered by what the gov't. did (bail out)....let them grow bigger balls. Of course...their ineptitude...and that of the banks and their slip-shod lending practices...put us where we are at now...without consequences. Almost sounds like a union type job where mediocrity is the norm....and it has praise lavished upon it on a normal basis.
These bastard's need to all go to the gas chamber.
These bastard's need to all go to the gas chamber.
The only comment I could make regarding Wall St bonuses would probably get me put in jail !! But at the very least I would love to give them their bonuses myself and I'd be very carefull to make sure I shove it all the up their fat @!$%#en asses !!
"If" these firms have made good ethical business decisions over the past year, and if any particular individual made an above the average effort to perform his job better then if the bottom line allows it, reasonable bonuses ought to be paid. It should not be a given, and if not earned ought not to be paid. This is part of our capitalistic system, and it is what has made our country the greatest in the world. If a particular firm does not serve its customers then its business will tend to move to its competitors who serve their customers better. It is not any different than switching your car and home owners insurance to a different carrier if they offer better coverage for less. The market place works we just need to do our just diligence in moving our dollars to where we receive the best service and bang for our buck.
Wall Street doesn't create jobs. It sells securities of companies that, in the past, have created jobs.
One question: do the investors - and that includes 401k investors in money-markets - pay for the value of a company? or for the market hype? Is this nuts-n-bolts value, employment, etc, or is this Vogue, "Strike a pose?"
There's plenty of room for disconnect between value and price (for those whom the phrase "people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing" is a bit alien). The bonuses on Wall Street don't have much to do with job creation, but they do have something to do with marketing their product, which has a lot to do with the disconnect between investment and the health of the economy.
Since they are some of the few still paying fed income tax, I say give it to them. More money for congress to
spendsquander.They are entitled to bonuses just as illegal aliens are entitled to their US government benefits.
Where is the relief for the Middle Class?
The Middle Class got sick and died six years ago.
The relief for the middle class will arrive when the middle class says no to the status quo. When money is pulled out of banks who pay little or no interest, credit cards are cut in half and returned, small community banks come online and people like you and me say no thank you to the greed on wall street. small is now beautiful. look in your own town for what you need. give wall street the only message they understand. stop giving them your money. cash spends nicely. and the beauty of cash is this: when you are out of cash you stop spending. no debt no interest. no interest no wall street bonuses. think about it.
I hope Wall Street burns if they get bonuses. I hope the Occupy Wall Street movement turns into the 2nd American Revolution.
For most, 50% or more of the bonus will go to fed/state/local income taxes. A bonus for Wall St is also a bonus for those sucking from the government teet.
B.S.
I think everyone should sit in on Eric Cantor's front lawn. What an idiot!
I think everyone should take a dump on Eric Cantor's front lawn.
A pile of @!$%# for a POS
This discussion cracks me up. If the people on Wall Street shouldn't get any bonuses, where should the money go? It's just like pro athletes. Many say they aren't worth what they are paid. So..... where should that money go? Should we have the government pass laws to take it away from athletes, team/company owners and Wall Street professionals, then give it away to other people you deem worthy? If what these people did was worthless there would be no money to pay bonuses/salaries. Obviously, somebody with money deems their services worthy and because of this these people are paid. Now, if you're unhappy about TARP, that's a different story. Go talk to the government about that.
Maybe they could give it to their clients who lost money while they were earning their bonuses.
Where would the money go? Give me a break,how about lower fees making it possible to buy more stock thus spurring the company and economy foreward.
mrwiz
What's even more funny is how people try to use logic to justify the salaries that banksters pay themselves. "Why, they think they're worth it, so they should be able to pay themselves that much!"
mr wiz, you crack me up. you are absolutely clueless as to the situation being decried. i am a small business owner. i am hanging on, but I have scaled back my prices to what i charged five years ago. i carry no debt and have been around long enough to have a client base. others are not so lucky. it is not right to destroy other people's lives in an attempt to evade responsibility for actions taken. wall street did just that with the "to big to fail" moniker. the working PEOPLE are to big to fail. occupy wall street is just the beginning. justice will prevail.
hang them all for their treason.......
I think the guillotine is more appropriate AND efficient. Capitalists like efficiency.