Wells Fargo is closing a Winston-Salem office that will result in the loss of 194 jobs, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the state. Most of the employees were notified they’d be losing their jobs on June 24, although employees working in the bank’s office were told business changes were coming on Feb. 4, according to Wells Fargo.
Some employees were told as early as April 1 that they’d be losing their jobs. Each employee was provided a 60-day notice period from the date they received formal notice of displacement. Employees losing their jobs worked in global operations, consumer lending, corporate risk and technology business units.
Wells Fargo was the 21st-largest employer in the Triad with about 2,300 employees as of last May, Triad Business News has reported.
For decades, Winston-Salem was the headquarters of Wachovia Bank, which merged with First Union of Charlotte in 2001. The headquarters moved to Charlotte, though the Wachovia name was retained.
In 2008, Wells Fargo bought Wachovia in a fire sale with pressure from federal regulators. The San Francisco-based company employs nearly 30,000 people in the Charlotte area, more than any other location.
It has more than 226,000 global employees. Wells Fargo is ranked as the fifth-largest private employer in North Carolina with about 35,000 workers.
The affected employees will be eligible for paid severance benefits based on years of service and the opportunity to continue participating in the company’s health plans at active rates for a period of time. The employees are not part of a union and do not have bumping rights.
“These business decisions are never easy. We are very thoughtful and deliberate in our approach, understanding the impact these decisions have on individuals at the company,” Wells Fargo wrote in a statement to the state. “We will make every effort to minimize the impact and ease the transition for our affected employees.”
Wells Fargo had more than $1.7 trillion in assets as of March 31, making it the nation’s fourth-largest bank by assets, according to the Federal Reserve.