MAY 18, 2021 — MORE BRANCHES CLOSING
According to Wells Fargo’s regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, 160 applications to close branches in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Arizona, Virginia, Georgia, New York, Connecticut, Utah, Illinois, Colorado, and South Carolina were filed on May 11, 2021.
According to published reports, Wells Fargo closed 329 of its 5,200 branches in 2020 and plans to close about 250 this year — having closed 117 already.
JULY 9, 2020 - MASS LAYOFFS COMING SOON?
According to Wells Fargo Chief Financial Officer John Shrewsberry, “There will come a time, and I assume at some point this year when we get back to executing on programs that are in place and some that are still under development that is designed to get our total expense base, which for us means our total headcount, to as lean a state as we can reasonably operate
A number of media outlets are reporting that the reduction in force can number into the tens of thousands of employees and be executed before year-end 2020.
The hardest hit will be those functions in customer-facing contact and support services that are now being automated with bots using artificial intelligence and those susceptible to customer self-service options. Bricks and mortar stand-alone banks may give way to third-party located ATMs and regional centers.
AUGUST 10, 2019 — REDUCTION IN FORCE IN SHOREVIEW, MINNESOTA.
The company has announced a reduction in force at their Shoreview customer service center which will see 400 employees laid off between November 2019 and January 2019.
According to information filed with the State of Minnesota 200 of the jobs being eliminated are on a phone bank. About 90 others are in customer-service roles, many of which are transacted via e-mail, chat, and social media.
According to a company spokesperson, “The shrinking of the customer-service center will not affect other Wells Fargo operations in the Shoreview office. While we recognize some current jobs will be eliminated with this business decision, the work will be absorbed by other domestic contact center locations.
SEPTEMBER 21, 2018 — Original Post…
The handwriting is clearly on the wall for all to see as the Wells Fargo CEO, Tim Sloan, “shared progress with team members on the company’s ongoing transformation, which addresses industry trends and changes in customer behavior, during a regularly scheduled company-wide town hall meeting.”
In a release, Sloan noted, “Wells Fargo is continuing to make fundamental changes designed to make the company more customer-focused, streamlined, and better positioned for long-term success and operational excellence. This work includes strengthening risk management, simplifying operations, leveraging digital automation, divesting non-core businesses, and continuing to become a more efficient company.”
But the key takeaway was that “ Given changing customer preferences, including the accelerating adoption of digital self-service capabilities, the focus on operational excellence, and ongoing commitment to efficiency, the company expects headcount to decline by approximately 5 to 10 percent within the next three years. This decline would reflect displacements as well as normal team-member attrition over that period.”
Since the bank currently has approximately 265,000 employees, the reduction would result in a loss of between 13,250 and 26,500 jobs.
It is time for employees to prepare for the future because we are betting that the layoffs will be coming sooner than later to improve share prices given the hefty penalties being assessed by regulators for various Wells Fargo misdeeds.
Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?