Oh the humanity

So far this week, Merrill Lynch was sold in a shotgun wedding to Bank of America; Lehman Brothers' U.S. operations wed Barclay's bank after the company was jilted by just about everyone else; AIG eloped with the U.S. government; and there are rumors of more of the same coming soon to a financial services institution near you.

What does all this mean for staffing?  According to our survey data, financial services is one of the most frequently cited top markets for staffing, particularly for office-suite staffing firms those offering office/clerical, finance/accounting, IT and direct hire.  As Staffing Industry Analysts Senior Editor Craig Johnson writes, that could mean tough times ahead for such firms, as a glut of financial services resumes flood the market and reduce the need for staffing's search capabilities.

But some companies are seeing the turmoil as a chance to poach top talent from Wall Street organizations, talent that in more stable times would not be listening.  Does this mean opportunity for staffing firms with connections to that top talent, a chance to fill otherwise unfillable orders?

Or is all this moot now that the Feds have promised a taxpayer subsidy roughly equal to the GDP of India to cover anticipated losses, and maybe it's the rest of us who have something to worry about?

I open the conversation.