How Goldman Sachs laid off 3,000 workers in one day

Calm bankers grasp that Goldman Sachs used underhanded, bone-chilling tactics as it ramped up bloodbath this week that claimed the lives of more than 3,000 employees, The Post has learned.

Insiders claim that the Wall Street giant – who was laid off on Wednesday Dubbed it “David’s Demolition Day.” Yet CEO David Solomon – Email Calendar invites targeted employees to sham business “meetings” at its New York headquarters.

But once the employees got into the conference room—many for meetings as early as 7:30 a.m. on a Wednesday—the team boss greeted them and told them they were going to be canned and that their manager was watching the proceedings on a charge.

“He got here early for the meeting and was given the news,” said one of the sources. “The meeting was put on his calendar under false pretenses.”

“The directors were sorry to do this but their hands were forced and they wished him the best of luck,” the source told The Post.

Another source said that another employee was told to arrive at 7:30 a.m. for a call with Goldman counterparts in the Asia-Pacific region and did not question the early meeting because those in other regions are usually during “off-duty hours.”

The fired employees were given the option to leave the office immediately or wait for colleagues to arrive so they could say goodbye. Most of the victims opted out of the building after a flurry of attempts before 9am – leaving colleagues who slipped in afterward scratching their heads as to what had happened, the sources said.

In fact, the cold efficiency of the proceedings took on an even more chaotic feel as many managers weren’t clear about next steps, including when health insurance coverage would expire or how much severance the fired employees would receive.

This is partly because the human resources department was among the units hardest hit by the firings, and it lacked the staff to properly run meetings, according to people familiar with the matter.

The source added: “When he asked questions…they had no details and asked him to confirm his personal cell and email and that someone would ‘reply back to him later. It’s all administrative.”

A Goldman Sachs spokesperson denied that cuts in human resources had an impact on the severance call and disputed the idea that the layoffs were a surprise. Solomon warned For the past few months, sales have been coming and the company said they would begin on Wednesday.

“We know this is a difficult time for people leaving the company. We are grateful for all of the contributions of our people, and we are offering support to ease their transition,” Tony Fratto, global head of communications, said in a statement.

Another source indicated that Goldman dealt with the directors and vice presidents with more transparency – warning them that they could be laid off during the last few weeks before a final decision is made.

The higher-level Goldmanites didn’t have much sympathy for those who were shocked by being kicked out after receiving a fraudulent calendar invite. Sending someone a calendar invite as a ruse to get them one-on-one and then let them go is “pretty ordinary,” one employee who’s been in finance for more than a decade told The Post.

The employee added, “If someone doesn’t see this coming…then on it.”

Younger employees in other industries seem unaware that Goldman uses a common tactic to fire people.

A frantic employee of the data company Dremio posted on the company’s message board Blind, which checks where users work with the help of their company’s email accounts, and they were the only colleagues invited by their manager for a 15-minute meeting.

“I am very worried… how likely is the layoffs?” asked the employee.

More veteran employees shared, “Yeah, it’s a layoff. The decision has already been made.”

Another blind user said, “You have been laid off. Clean your laptop. Collect anything you want to save such as contact information for references.”

The Dremio employee has not posted an update on their work status since.