UK
Urban myth has it that senior bankers work less hard than their minions. This may not be true.
The death earlier this month of Richard Ratner, senior retail analyst at brokerage Seymour Pierce, suggests that long hours can take their toll. Aged just 58, Ratner died of a heart attack..
According to the Financial Times, Ratner got up every morning at 4.30am and returned home every evening at 9.30pm. This was despite being neither an analyst nor an associate – he’d been in the game 26 years.
This month’s Vogue magazine also underscores the fact that it’s not all long lunches and rounds of golf towards the top of the greasy pole. The magazine provides an example of how Jemma Bruton, a Goldman Sachs executive director, divides her day: Bruton says she spends 12.5 hours devoted to work and work-related affairs, and another 50 minutes travelling there and back.
There are exceptions: the Wall Street Journal alleges that Jimmy Cayne, chairman and chief exec of Bear Stearns, left the office on Thursday afternoons over the summer and spent Fridays at his golf club (he’s also alleged to be partial to smoking pot after playing bridge).
Meanwhile, Bruton does admittedly spend 15 minutes tending a basil plant and three hours socializing over dinner (with clients or without?), but both her story and Ratner’s send a clear message: redundancy may be bad news, but it could also offer an opportunity for a well-earned rest.
Ratner didn’t die from working long hours. His life was relatively stress-free and he was spending most of his time meeting and dining with executives.
The real cause of his death was an awfuly unhealthy lifestyle and his daily boozy lunches
If he chose to get up at that ungodly hour every day he did that out of sheer greed and has now paid the ultimate price for that. Surely he could have retired years ago. You don’t tell me he was working for a living? The difference is that there are many people around the world who have to work those hours just to scrape enough money together to feed themselves and their families. I don’t feel sorry for Mr. Ratner, I’m afraid.
totally agree with DZ..
Absolutely, it might be a long day but if you’re out on three-hour lunches it doesn’t seem so bad. I’m sure there are some people out their knackering their bodies up in long-houred hard labour jobs, and they don’t make the news if they pop off early
Is this article serious? How can anyone draw generalised conclusions from 3 or 4 isolated cases or examples?
totlally agrree with above commnets. the man was clearly overweight (alcohol?) and driven by greed. i know of builders who get up at that hour and risk their lives each day on a building site just to crape a living. stop glorifying and feeling sorry for greedy, comfortable bankers (male or female)
He was a tee-totaller actually.
Ratner had a very stressful working day actually DZ, and spent a max of one hour a day entertaining clients – most of his time was writing and working the phone. He was not a drinker and whilst he eat unhealthy food, stress and working pressures certainly played their part. I should know, i worked with him for 5 years!
on the question of greed, each individual selects what kind of lifestyle they want…but certainly Ratner wasnt super rich by any means. he also, contrary to popular belief, did not spend 15 minutes a day looking after a basil plant – nor would he even consider eating the stuff!!
I think we should let him rest in peace now
RW – it was Bruton who spent 15 miins tending a basil plant, not Ratner
Anyone who needs to work more than 2 hours a day as senior person is doing something wrong. Delegate everrything, go home early, holiday a lot.
well he put too much sugar in his tea
It is fair to say most of us would love to climb the greasy pole and get Cayned.
Farley Hill’s damn’right! Otherwise, what else are you climbing the greasy pole for? .. if it’s for the money, you better quit “tertiary slavery” (anyone working for a salary) and move on to set up your own business, the only way to really make serious money…
It’s naive to blame early mornings for this. Far too many variables. I know someone who died at 40 and wasn’t a banker. Get over yourself!