A Jobs Program for Destitute Bankers

The American economy is undergoing a massive sectoral shift.  Just as with tech and telecoms a decade earlier, we've realized that the financial sector is way bloated, and many of its excess workers need to be found other jobs.

Luckily for them, unlike many categories of displaced workers, they have skills that will be useful in our newest growth industry:  regulating financial companies.  Apparently, the Federal government has realized this, and is having a jobs fair in New York for them.




The results should be interesting no matter what happens.  If no one shows up, you'll know that the woebegone bankers couldn't yet bring themselves to admit that their days at Nobu are over.  If they apply, and win government jobs . . . well, I'd like to be a fly on the wall the first time an investment banker realizes he needs a form signed in triplicate to order top shelf office supplies.  It is true that bankers have an outsized sense of entitlement.  It is also true that the bureaucratic nonsense the government forces its employees to endure is quite enough to drive anyone insane.

If any of my readers are displaced financial professionals, however, they probably shouldn't reject the notion out of hand.  As someone who myself downsized from my b-school income expectations, I can report first hand that it's not nearly as bad as you think. DC is a lovely city, and unlike New York, it's quite possible to live a really full and pleasant life on about what you probably used to spend on lunch.  Also, if spent wisely, leisure has as much hedonic value as even really large amounts of cash.