JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup Encourage Voting

By Isla Binnie, Nupur Anand, and Tatiana Bautzer

NEW YORK (Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Bank of America, and Citigroup have reminded employees that they can take paid time off to vote in Tuesday's U.S. presidential election, emphasizing the importance of bipartisan cooperation.

The three largest U.S. banks employ nearly 760,000 people globally, including staff in U.S. branches and corporate offices.

"One of the distinctive hallmarks of our American democracy is the long history of Americans choosing their leaders and the peaceful transfer of power," wrote JPMorgan executives led by CEO Jamie Dimon in a memo last week. They reaffirmed their commitment to operating "across the political spectrum."

A bank spokesperson confirmed that a similar message was sent in 2020, pointing employees to voter registration information and outlining their policy on taking paid time off to vote.

Citigroup offers U.S. workers three hours of paid leave if needed to vote, according to a memo from Ed Skyler, head of enterprise services and public affairs, and Sara Wechter, the human resources chief.

Citi executives noted, "The only thing certain about the election is that roughly half of the U.S. will be unhappy with the outcome. Our colleagues have divergent and equally passionate views across a range of issues. Despite those differences, we are proud of how our Citi community consistently shows respect for one another."

Bank of America, the second-largest U.S. lender, has also maintained a similar policy since 2020, providing employees several hours of paid leave to vote. Employees were reminded of this policy through an internal website in recent days.