CNN: After losing $3+ billion in 2008 Q4, Goldman Sachs on track to lavish $21 billion on workers

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Wall Street's bonus baby steps

By Colin Barr, senior writerDecember 30, 2009: 10:29 AM ET

A year after taxpayers saved the finance industry from collapse, the big banks will hand out billions of dollars in bonuses in the coming weeks -- at a time where unemployment tops 10% and many people are still losing their homes to foreclosures. To say this rankles in some quarters is an understatement.

"There is a need to show restraint considering the unusual circumstances of the past year or so," said Tim Smith, a senior vice president at socially responsible investment firm Walden Asset Management in Boston. "That's what you're not seeing right now."

Take Goldman Sachs. After losing more than $3 billion in the last four months of 2008, the securities firm is on track to lavish some $21 billion on its workers for 2009, now that the firm has returned to profitability. That's in line with the amount Goldman paid in its record profit year of 2007.

Goldman won't be the only one dispensing a lot of loot. Compensation expense at JPMorgan Chase's (JPM, Fortune 500) investment banking arm was up 20% in the first three quarters of 2009, the New York state comptroller's office estimates. Even Morgan Stanley, which only recently broke an embarrassing streak of quarterly losses, could pay workers $14 billion.

http://money.cnn.com/2009/12/30/news/economy/bonuses.fortune/index.htm?cnn=yes

[ixion]

1. When the banks teamed up with Monsanto and ConAgra, et. al. to kill the family farm

no one really cared, too much. There were benefits and songs, but all-in-all, the destruction was carried on quite unhindered.

Now, they're coming for the rest of the US. Will people stand up to them? It remains to be seen.

[hobbit709]

2. One of these needs to be set up in front of their HQ

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. +1

[happy_liberal]

3. Ever get the feeling the super rich elite are laughing at us

We use to have a real media, and Congress, and judiciary that would never let them get away with this type of thing. Now they do whatever they want, even robbing the treasury right in front of everyone, and still no one does anything.
Everytime we let them get away with something they get even more brazen. It is just a game to them and the American people are in some sort of powerless stupor.

[mike_c]

4. that is BEYOND obscene-- are there no torches, no pitchforks in this country...?

:cry:

[Name removed]

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