BNY Mellon Corp. to lay off 1,500 workers

Bank of New York Mellon Corp. said Wednesday that it will cut about 1,500 jobs, or 3 percent of its workforce.

Chief executive Bob Kelly noted that the bank's revenue had been growing but added that "expenses have been growing unsustainably faster."

The bank said it hasn't yet determined what types of jobs will be cut or where. It said it would try to minimize layoffs with a hiring freeze and by reducing the use of temporary workers, consultants and contractors.

The banking industry also resorted to layoffs during 2008 and 2009 as the financial crisis pummeled earnings and banks took government bailouts. But 2010 provided some relief, and banks even hired back some of their laid-off workers.

Banks have been cutting jobs again in recent months. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and State Street Corp., among others, each announced last month that they would lay off about 3 percent of their workforces.

A BNY spokesman said the layoffs had been planned "for some time" and weren't related to banking's recent hammering in the stock market.

Analysts say the latest cuts point to permanent structural changes as the banking industry becomes smaller, less risky and also less profitable. Many of the complicated investment vehicles that fueled earnings before the financial crisis are gone, banned by new regulations meant to prevent another global collapse.