I've been browsing job boards and it's good to see that there are many open positions available in our sector. I'm not sure how long that's going to be true, considering all the layoffs happening here and at our competitors, so I'd advise all of those who were affected to start looking right now.
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In general, it is a good practice to always have your resume updated and ready to go, not just during periods of layoffs. Nobody wants to be scrambling to create a resume or update it when something sudden and unexpected happens.
A lot of things can happen on the drop of a dime, as many people are figuring out in these current economic times. The situation with this bank is not unique. A lot of employees have come into work one day only to find out they no longer have a job. CITI decimated their staff, especially in IT. Wells is also engaging in deep cuts. We haven't seen this level of cuts in this industry since the Great Recession during the mortgage crisis.
The labor market itself is still quite healthy at this time. It's this particular industry that is being impacted negatively. This sector is going to see a lot of downsizing due to the nature of the business and the current financial environment. But there are still ample opportunities elsewhere - at least for now.
Irrespective of layoffs or this particular situation with this bank, if you are in a technology or IT role I would definitely be considering a possible career move to another sector, preferably sooner rather than later.
I do not know what it is like at PNC as I have never worked there. But most banks are slowly outsourcing all of their tech and IT tasks offshore. There are a growing number of major cuts in this particular area industry-wide.
Financial institutions are saving a tremendous amount of expense and tax dollars by outsourcing. It is the growing trend. Right now, the only thing preventing the banks from going completely offshore is the fact that fed regs limit the amount of work that can be sent offshore. But that has been changing and is likely to change in the very near future as more politicians in Congress get greased under the table to sponsor new bills which remove this limitation.
But the truth is, if your role is in software development, IT, programming, system/business/data analyst, etc.....in five years most banks probably are going to have the majority of this stuff parked with offshore contractors. Everyone is headed that route and it's the way the wind is blowing.
I am retired but have worked in the industry for a few decades in IT. I am not trying to be negative here with doom and gloom. But my honest advice to people in this area is to try to move out of the financial sector into another line of business. Best place to go for IT is a small or mid-sized employer outside the financial sector. Stay away from large corporations if possible as they are the least stable when it comes to IT/Tech employment.
If you do work for a bank in IT, you won't eventually be getting a pink slip because employers need to eliminate x number of positions. You will probably eventually be getting a pink slip because they found offshore contractors who will jump at the opportunity to do the same tasks for $10/hr. And you don't have to pay benefits and insurance.