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JPMorgan to slash 12,000 jobs

(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-02-27 10:52

NEW YORK -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. said Thursday it will eliminate about 12,000 jobs as part of its takeover of the failed Washington Mutual.

People walk past the JPMorgan Chase & Co building in New York, March 17, 2008. [Agencies]

Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said the cut was a precautionary move to ensure that the company has financial flexibility should economic conditions worsen. The move will save the company about US$5 billion per year.

Related readings:  JPMorgan cutting 9,200 jobs at Washington Mutual  JPMorgan cuts 3,000 investment banking jobs  JPMorgan to buy Washington Mutual deposits

JPMorgan acquired the assets of Seattle-based WaMu, the largest bank ever to fail in US history, at the end of September.

JPMorgan's decision came followed the release of the Labor Department's worse-than-expected job data.

The government said Thursday that first-time requests for unemployment benefits jumped to 667,000 from the previous week's figure of 631,000 and the number of Americans continuing to receive unemployment benefits has topped 5.1 million.