JPMorgan Limits Junior Staff to 80-Hour Weeks

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September 20, 2024

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Exercise 1

Vocabulary

Repeat each word, definition, and example sentence after your tutor.

investment

Noun

ɪnˈvɛstmənt

the action or process of putting money into something in order to make more money; the amount of money put into something, or the thing into which money is put

Andrea owns an apartment in New York as well as several investment properties.

Compared to other investments, collectable whisky has seen high returns over the last decade.

burnout

Noun

ˈbɜːrnaʊt

the state of being physically or mentally exhausted due to working too much

The survey found that teachers in the US experience more burnout than workers in any other industry.

clot

Noun

klɑːt

a thick, almost solid mass of blood that can block blood vessels

The study revealed that pregnant women have a higher risk of developing blood clots.

evidence

Noun

ˈɛvɪdəns

a fact, object, etc. that shows that something is true

The new evidence gives us greater insight into how the Neanderthals lived.

guaranteed

Adjective

ˌɡeærənˈtiːd

for which promise or formal assurance is given

Finland trialed a guaranteed income program back in 2017, but chose not to extend it.

rite of passage

Noun

ˌraɪt əv ˈpæsɪdʒ

a ceremony or event that marks an important stage or milestone in someone's life

Many people see moving out of their parents' home as a rite of passage into adulthood.

Exercise 2

Article

Read the article aloud on your own or repeat each paragraph after your tutor.

AI Generated Audio––:–– / ––:––

JPMorgan Limits Junior Staff to 80-Hour Weeks

Junior employees at the investment bank JPMorgan Chase will be given more protection against burnout — but they could still be working 80-hour weeks.

It has been reported that JPMorgan, the biggest bank in the US, has a new policy that will limit the working hours of junior bankers. That could be 13 hours a day over six days a week, or 11 hours a day over seven days, according to staff.

However, there will still be some exceptions to that new rule — for example, if employees are working on a particularly important deal.

The average working week for all employees in the US is 34 hours.

Younger staff at some of the biggest banks around the world have often been expected to work extremely long hours. These working conditions have been linked to illness and even death.

Earlier this year, Leo Lukenas, a 35-year-old investment banker at Bank of America — and a former member of the US Army Special Forces — died of a blood clot after working 100-hour weeks.

There was no evidence directly linking Lukenas' work to his death, but research has shown that stress can make conditions like blood clots more likely.

Bank of America has said it will be monitoring the working hours of its junior employees more closely.

Online, employees at some of the biggest banks in the US have complained about their working conditions and the effects of overwork on their health.

JPMorgan staff get just one small period of guaranteed time off each week: from 6 p.m. on a Friday to midday on a Saturday.

Employees also get one completely free weekend every three months.

Some in the industry have suggested that working long hours is a "rite of passage" for younger staff, who are often very well paid. At JPMorgan, junior bankers start at more than $100,000 a year.