Wall Street Analyst Wins $5M Settlement After Being Fired for Needing 8 Hours Sleep

What Happened Kathryn Shiber was hired as an analyst at Centerview Partners in July 2020, one of Wall Street’s most prestigious investment banks. The 21-year-old quickly found herself working what the industry euphemistically calls “banker’s hours” – often 100 to 120 hours per week, with some stretches requiring work “around the clock.” Suffering from anxiety disorder, Shiber requested a reasonable accommodation: eight hours of sleep per night. Instead of working with her on the request, Centerview Partners fired her via Zoom call after just three months on the job.