So, you’ve probably seen the headlines. Goldman Sachs is trimming the fat again. It feels like every time the calendar flips to a new year, the "Vampire Squid" starts sharpening the hatchet. But honestly, the 2026 version of Goldman Sachs laying off employees isn’t just your standard "underperformer" purge. There is something much weirder happening under the hood of the world’s most powerful investment bank.
Wall Street is currently caught in this bizarre middle ground. On one hand, CEO David Solomon is out here telling TIME that he’s optimistic about a "fiscally stimulative" 2026. On the other hand, the bank’s own economists are warning of a "jobless recovery."
It’s confusing. It’s messy. And if you’re working in a cubicle at 200 West Street, it’s probably a little terrifying.
The OneGS 3.0 Reality Check
You might have heard the term "OneGS 3.0" floating around. It sounds like a software update for a fridge, but for Goldman, it’s basically the blueprint for how they plan to run the bank with fewer humans. In late 2025 and heading into early 2026, the firm made it clear: they are shifting from "crisis mode" cuts to "automation" cuts.
Basically, if your job involves a spreadsheet and a predictable set of rules, AI is coming for your seat.
David Solomon, John Waldron, and Denis Coleman—the big three at the top—sent out a memo that basically said they’re in the "early innings" of using AI to fix their operational efficiency. Translated from corporate-speak? They’re testing how many back-office roles they can delete before the whole machine breaks. This isn't just about saving a few bucks on salaries. It's about a structural shift. They want a "flywheel of activity" that doesn't require hiring 2,000 new people every single time revenue goes up.
Why the Apple Card Exit Matters
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the Apple Card.
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For years, Goldman tried to be a "bank for the people." It didn't work. It was a bloodbath of losses. Now, as of January 2026, they’ve officially handed the keys to Chase. This transition is a massive part of the Goldman Sachs laying off narrative because it signals the total death of their "Platform Solutions" experiment.
- They’re moving a $20 billion portfolio.
- They're shedding the staff that managed it.
- They’re pivoting back to what they know: rich people and giant corporations.
When a bank stops trying to be a tech-savvy consumer lender and goes back to being a "white-shoe" investment firm, a lot of mid-level managers suddenly find their badges don't work anymore.
The Stock Market Is Getting Bored of Layoffs
Here is a twist nobody saw coming: the stock market is starting to hate layoffs.
Historically, when a company announced job cuts, the stock price went up. Investors loved "efficiency." But according to a recent Goldman report (yes, they wrote a report about how the market views people like them), investors are now punishing companies that announce layoffs.
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On average, firms announcing cuts have seen their stock drop by about 2%.
Why? Because the market is starting to suspect that "AI-driven restructuring" is just a fancy way of saying "our business is shrinking and we're desperate." Investors aren't stupid. They know that if you’re cutting talent, you might be losing your competitive edge. Goldman is walking a tightrope here—trying to keep the "OneGS" efficiency dream alive while trying not to look like a sinking ship to the guys on the trading floor.
The Annual "Strategic Resource Assessment"
We have to be real: Goldman cuts people every year. It’s part of their DNA.
They call it the Strategic Resource Assessment (SRA). Usually, they ditch the bottom 1% to 5% of the workforce. In 2024, it was around 1,800 people. In 2025, they hit the "hundreds" mark again. By early 2026, the trend hasn't stopped, but the type of person getting the boot has changed.
It used to be the junior bankers who couldn't handle 100-hour weeks. Now, it’s the college-educated professionals in "rules-based" roles. Chief US Economist David Mericle pointed out that the unemployment rate for college grads is climbing. It’s 50% higher than its 2022 low. That is a staggering number for a demographic that usually feels bulletproof.
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What This Means for Your Career
If you're looking at the financial sector right now, the "Goldilocks" era of easy hiring is over. Goldman is still hiring—they take in about 2,000 to 2,500 grads a year—but Solomon himself admitted there’s "downward pressure" on those numbers.
So, what do you actually do with this information?
- Audit your "repetitive" tasks. If 80% of your day is moving data from one place to another, you are in the crosshairs of the next OneGS 3.0 update.
- Pivot to "High-End" AI. Goldman isn't firing the people who build the AI; they're firing the people who are replaced by it. Data governance and system oversight are the new "safe" havens.
- Watch the "Jobless Recovery." If GDP is going up but jobs are staying flat, that’s a signal that productivity is being driven by software, not souls.
The 2026 landscape for Goldman Sachs laying off staff is a warning shot for the rest of the white-collar world. It’s not a recession move. It’s a transformation move. The bank is getting smaller, leaner, and much more robotic. Whether that makes it a better bank remains to be seen, but for now, the message is clear: the era of "human-heavy" banking is officially in the rearview mirror.
If you’re currently in the industry, the best move isn’t to wait for the next SRA memo. It’s to ensure your skill set is the one managing the "flywheel" rather than being stuck inside it. Keep an eye on the Q1 2026 earnings reports—that’s where we’ll see if this "automation-first" strategy actually translates to the 15% earnings growth Solomon is promising.