Why the pandemic couldn't kill the 100-hour week

Bankers and lawyers have long had punishing work schedules. Has the pandemic – and a widespread move towards flexible working – changed that? Guest host Bethan Staton speaks to Craig Coben, a former senior investment banker at Bank of America and Deutsche Bank, as well as Suzi Ring, the FT’s legal correspondent. They discuss why client satisfaction trumps work-life balance, why law firms can’t just hire twice as many lawyers to work half as hard, and what bankers actually do during a 100-hour work week.

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The ‘80-hour circuit breaker’: Wall Street banks tackle workloads of junior staff

High pressure, long days, crushing workloads: why is investment banking like this?

London’s junior lawyers deserve their £150,000 pay

Presented by Bethan Staton, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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