Goldman Sachs hiked pay for 1st year technologists to £98k. And it's causing some problems

Goldman Sachs has given its junior technology staff in London a big pay hike. And it's causing issues with staff in other divisions.

Goldman insiders say the firm awarded a big pay rise to its most junior London technology staff when it awarded its bonuses last Thursday. First year technology trainees (who joined in July 2018) are understood to have been given £43k ($56k) in bonuses each in addition to their £55k base salaries, bringing their annual compensation to £98k ($128k).

Goldman Sachs declined to comment on the claims. The pay rise is understood to have been targeted at first year technologists with post graduate qualifications rather than those who simply have a bachelors degree.

Goldman insiders say bonuses in the technology division are standardized, and that the bonus recipients with post-grad qualifications have received a big rise compared to their predecessors. Last year, they claim bonuses for first year technologists were £27.5k, plus salaries of £39k.

The implication, then, is that Goldman has just hiked total compensation for juniors in technology jobs by nearly 50% in a single year.

Goldman is also understood to have increased salaries for London technology juniors to £60k from 2019.

While the firms' technology trainees are frankly delighted with their pay rise, it's said to be less popular with analysts in other divisions. First year analysts in Goldman's investment banking division (IBD) typically receive around £80k in salary and bonus. "People here have been extremely disappointed to find out that the technologists they work with are better paid," says one GS junior.

The pay rise for technologists comes after Goldman increased its technology spending by 14% last year, to over $1bn. It also follows claims by ex-CEO Lloyd Blankfein a year ago that Goldman was very focused on hiring technologists and "strats" - people who straddle both quantitative and technology functions.

The latest pay increase also comes after Goldman reportedly hiked pay for 'entry level engineers' in the U.S. to $100k around 16 months ago. As the firm continues to compete globally for top technology talent, it seems that it's upping the stakes again.

How high are Goldman Sachs' technology salaries in London?

First year technology salaries at Goldman Sachs in London are around £55k. Second year technologists receive salaries of £60k. When bonuses of £43k are added, some first year technologists are now on packages of £98k ($128k).

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