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Wells Fargo fires more than a dozen for ‘keyboard activity simulation’
(Bloomberg) — Wells Fargo & Co. fired more than a dozen employees last month after investigating allegations that they were faking work.
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The employees, all from the company’s wealth and investment management unit, were “dismissed following review of allegations involving simulated keyboard activity, creating the impression of active work,” according to disclosures filed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority .
“Wells Fargo holds employees to the highest standards and does not tolerate unethical behavior,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.
Devices and software to mimic employee activity, sometimes known as “mouse movers” or “mouse jigglers,” took off during the pandemic-spurred work-from-home era, with people exchanging tips on how to use them on social media sites. social media Reddit and TikTok. These gadgets are available on Amazon.com for less than $20.
It’s unclear from Finra’s revelations whether employees fired by Wells Fargo were allegedly pretending to actively work from home. The financial sector was among the most aggressive in ordering workers back to the office as the pandemic eased, although Wells Fargo waited longer than rivals JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
San Francisco-based Wells Fargo began requiring employees to return to the office under a “flexible hybrid model” in early 2022. The bank now expects most employees to be in the office at least three days a week, while management committee members are on four days and many employees, such as branch workers, are on five days.
The country’s fourth-largest lender has been looking to grow its wealth management business under the leadership of CEO Charlie Scharf and his deputy, Barry Sommers, who joined the company in 2020. The unit was hit particularly hard by a series of scandals that erupted in 2016, sending consultants fleeing by the thousands, taking lucrative clients with them.
The recent firings echo another episode at Wells Fargo from 2018, when the company investigated employees at its investment bank for alleged violations of its expense policy after they tried to get the company to pay for ineligible evening meals.
–With assistance from Noah Buhayar and Dean Halford.
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