Latest news with #AaronHaney
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Baird employees say working conditions are unreasonable with 100-hour workweeks, according to report
Milwaukee-based wealth management firm Baird & Co. is under fire after employees have claimed unsustainable work conditions that led several bankers to quit and at least one to collapse of exhaustion, according to the Wall Street Journal. The complaints first came to light in an April 12 anonymous post on Wall Street Oasis, a popular message board for Wall Street employees. The author, who claimed to be a former Baird employee, said analysts and associates were "treated as scum." The post garnered hundreds of comments, including many echoing the author's allegations. Baird did not return a request for comment at the time of publication. Founded in Milwaukee in 1919, Baird operates more than 155 offices nationwide, including 15 in Wisconsin, according to its website. The anonymous author did not specify which branch they were writing about, but on April 30, the Wall Street Journal reported similar poor working conditions at the firm's Chicago office. Here's what the Wall Street Journal report said about working conditions at Baird. In anonymous interviews to the Wall Street Journal, former employees and people familiar with the firm said strenuous working conditions on Baird's industrials team have led more than a dozen members of the team to leave since the start of 2024. Former employees said 110-hour weeks were the norm, and managers would often not honor the firm's required policy of Saturdays off, the Journal reported. In one instance at the Chicago office, junior bankers who had been working until 4 a.m. for weeks last year were gathered for a pizza party where managers told them to step up their performance, sources told the Journal. One former analyst told the Journal he was chastised by his boss for leaving his desk for more than five minutes to pick up dinner, and another employee was reported to be diagnosed with a failed pancreas after collapsing at home from exhaustion. The employee, who had previously raised concerns to human resources about 20-hour workdays, was fired for poor productivity after a second emergency room visit, the Journal reported. Meanwhile, other bankers still employed by the team told the Journal they weren't bothered by the working conditions and found them to be on par with other investment banking firms. After the message board post began gathering traction, senior bankers at Baird convened a town hall for the industrials team and encouraged junior employees to voice concerns, the Journal reported. A midlevel manager, Aaron Haney, who was cited by the Journal as often assigning 20-hour days, also left the firm in April, according to a report from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Long work hours and limited time off are often the norm for junior employees at major investment banking firms. In recent months, these practices have come under increased scrutiny, especially following the death last year of a 35-year-old Bank of America employee from a blood clot after regularly working 100-hour weeks. As of 2023, more than 1,600 associates worked at Baird's downtown Milwaukee headquarters at the U.S. Bank Center. As the building's largest tenant, Baird's name is displayed on two signs atop the tower. Downtown Milwaukee's convention center was also renamed Baird Center in 2024, after the financial services company became the official naming rights partner for the facility. Maia Pandey can be reached at mpandey@ This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Baird, based in Milwaukee, under fire for long work hours, report says
Mint
01-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Pizza party or warning? Bankers working 110-hour weeks asked to ‘do better'
At Robert W. Baird, a group of junior bankers worked till 4 am for many weeks. One day, the multinational independent investment firm called for a pizza party in Chicago. Many thought it was to thank them. But, the company had other plans. Managers told them they needed to do better. When some bankers complained about long hours, they were told to work smarter. According to The Wall Street Journal, Former staff said 110-hour weeks were common. Managers often broke the rules, including skipping required Saturdays off. A banker at Robert W. Baird earlier complained to HR about working 20 hours daily. Soon after, he collapsed at home, and doctors found his pancreas had failed, likely due to overwork. He was later fired for poor performance. On Wall Street Oasis, posts went viral about a mid-level banker who made juniors work 20-hour shifts. That banker, Aaron Haney, was sacked in April. People who worked with him said he was popular and also worked long hours himself. A former analyst at Baird told the publication that he once worked on a deal for a year, often overnight. One evening, he stepped out for dinner. Then, his boss got angry for not informing him. Since early 2024, over a dozen junior staff have quit Baird's team, some recently. Two went to hospital after working long hours. One even told HR that the pressure was too much. Infosys founder Narayana Murthy once suggested a 70-hour work week. L&T Chairman supported 90-hour weeks. Now, Elon Musk has praised DOGE workers for working 120 hours. However, the sentiment is different among Indian employees. In big cities like Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai, 90% of people feel 12-hour work days are impractical. They blame the long travel time, which takes around two to three hours every day. First Published: 1 May 2025, 04:24 PM IST
