Sunday, November 30, 2008

Jobless In Seattle

It seems most bank branch employees will keep their jobs, but it's going to be a bloodbath in Seattle for back office employees of Washington Mutual.

Up to 19,000 employees of Washington Mutual face being laid off this weekend as JPMorgan Chase turns up the synergy on its recent acquisition.

On Friday, JPMorgan Chase (nyse: JPM - news - people ) said it expects to retain the 22,000 employees who work at Washington Mutual branches and 2,000 workers in the mortgage and wealth management divisions in California, spokesman Tom Kelly told Forbes.com. The company has not yet determined the total numbers to be cut in other states, but it planning to inform all former WaMu employees of their job status by Monday.