ExBankers File Class-Action Suit Over $66 Million in Bonuses

Ex-Bankers File Class-Action Suit Over $66 Million in Unpaid Bonuses

A group of 104 former investment bankers for the now-defunct Dresdner Kleinwort are suing their former employer for $66 million, claiming the bank failed to pay them the guaranteed bonuses -- or bonuses used in an aim to retain workers -- that they were promised at the end of 2008, The New York Times reports. The bank fell into crisis, along with the rest of the financial system, and its parent company was ultimately taken over.

It's rare for a group of former employees to file a class-action lawsuit over bonuses since bonuses are usually discretionary, according to the NYT. But guaranteed bonuses are somewhat of a different animal -- they're promised to especially talented workers or new hires in an effort to retain them -- and they're making a comeback. Banks boosted their use of the one-year guaranteed bonus for new hires in 2010 amid pressure to recruit stellar senior staff, according to the Institute for International Finance, an industry advocacy group.

But discretionary bonuses are stoking some ire among some bankers. This winter a group of bankers in the U.S. threatened to quit their jobs at the Jefferies group if their bonuses weren't up to snuff, according to the New York Post.

Fears of smaller bonuses aren't unique to employees at Jeffries. Across the financial industry, companies are poised to dole out a little less year-end cash. Anxiety over the state of the global economy, new regulations, slow dealmaking and public ire at banks likely pushed banks to slash their bonus pools to the lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Morgan Stanley, for one, announced earlier this month that it would cap all of its cash bonuses this year at $125,000, while top executives won't receive any cash bonuses, according to a separate NYT report.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/2 ... f=business

I'm choking back the tears here... I may not be able to get through the rest of my day... Thinking about the murdered cat, and these unpaid bonuses all in the same day is just ... too much.... :VeryScared:

The AUDACITY!!! Unbelievable.....

Bonuses are going down! Goldman Sach partners will have less money to donate to Obama's campaign!

FredHayek wrote: Bonuses are going down! Goldman Sach partners will have less money to donate to Obama's campaign!

How Mitt Romney Got A Seven-Digit Windfall Courtesy Of Goldman Sachs

Mitt Romney, man of considerable wealth, has Goldman Sachs to thank for at least some of his fortune.

In his 2010 and preliminary 2011 tax returns, made available for public viewing on Tuesday, Romney's relationship with the Wall Street firm comes to life -- one in which a future Republican presidential candidate benefited from preferential treatment during the iconic investment bank's initial public offering in 1999.

As noted by The New York Times, Romney experienced a seven-digit windfall in 2010 thanks to his connection with Goldman Sachs, which handled many of the candidate's assets in return for some $48,582 in management fees.

Romney's bonanza came about as a result of a 2010 sale of 7,000 stock shares from Goldman Sachs's initial public offering, which happened in 1999. At the time, Goldman's public launch raised some eyebrows for how carefully the company steered the allocation of its own stock.

The fact that Romney was even given the opportunity to have shares in the company when it went public makes him part of a rather exclusive club, as shares went to a handpicked group of customers, employees, and partners. Romney acquired 7,000 shares, which went into a blind trust managed by Goldman itself -- eventually netting $1,130,123.87.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/2 ... 29227.html

Gee, would that be less money for Obama's campaign BEFORE or AFTER they made sure that Romney got 7-figure sweetheart-deal that none of the other 99%'ers got?

LadyJazzer wrote:

FredHayek wrote: Bonuses are going down! Goldman Sach partners will have less money to donate to Obama's campaign!

How Mitt Romney Got A Seven-Digit Windfall Courtesy Of Goldman Sachs

Mitt Romney, man of considerable wealth, has Goldman Sachs to thank for at least some of his fortune.

In his 2010 and preliminary 2011 tax returns, made available for public viewing on Tuesday, Romney's relationship with the Wall Street firm comes to life -- one in which a future Republican presidential candidate benefited from preferential treatment during the iconic investment bank's initial public offering in 1999.

As noted by The New York Times, Romney experienced a seven-digit windfall in 2010 thanks to his connection with Goldman Sachs, which handled many of the candidate's assets in return for some $48,582 in management fees.

Romney's bonanza came about as a result of a 2010 sale of 7,000 stock shares from Goldman Sachs's initial public offering, which happened in 1999. At the time, Goldman's public launch raised some eyebrows for how carefully the company steered the allocation of its own stock.

The fact that Romney was even given the opportunity to have shares in the company when it went public makes him part of a rather exclusive club, as shares went to a handpicked group of customers, employees, and partners. Romney acquired 7,000 shares, which went into a blind trust managed by Goldman itself -- eventually netting $1,130,123.87.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/2 ... 29227.html

Gee, would that be less money for Obama's campaign BEFORE or AFTER they made sure that Romney got 7-figure sweetheart-deal that none of the other 99%'ers got?

Since we are playing tit-for-tat...

BARACK OBAMA (D)
Top Contributors
This table lists the top donors to this candidate in the 2008 election cycle. The organizations themselves did not donate , rather the money came from the organizations' PACs, their individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families. Organization totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.

Because of contribution limits, organizations that bundle together many individual contributions are often among the top donors to presidential candidates. These contributions can come from the organization's members or employees (and their families). The organization may support one candidate, or hedge its bets by supporting multiple candidates. Groups with national networks of donors - like EMILY's List and Club for Growth - make for particularly big bundlers.

University of California $1,648,685
Goldman Sachs $1,013,091
Harvard University $878,164
Microsoft Corp $852,167
Google Inc $814,540
JPMorgan Chase & Co $808,799
Citigroup Inc $736,771
Time Warner $624,618
Sidley Austin LLP $600,298
Stanford University $595,716
National Amusements Inc $563,798
WilmerHale LLP $550,668
Columbia University $547,852
Skadden, Arps et al $543,539
UBS AG $532,674
IBM Corp $532,372
General Electric $529,855
US Government $513,308
Morgan Stanley $512,232
Latham & Watkins $503,295

And the beat goes on.
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contr ... =N00009638