Bloomberg News has an entertaining dispatch about how JP Morgan Chase is adding more jobs in Texas than in New York:
The bank already has 25,000 workers in Texas and started construction this summer on a 12-story tower that will house about 4,000 employees, increasing its total employment in the state.
Dimon started dropping clues about the bank's location shift at the annual meeting -- held in Plano -- last year.
"There are more JPMorgan Chase employees in Texas than any other state outside of New York," he said. "I'm sure it will be No. 1 soon."...
Cheap housing and the absence of a state income tax have made Texas popular with workers, while low corporate taxes and a reputation for a pro-business regulatory environment have persuaded large employers to relocate. JPMorgan struck a deal with the city of Plano in 2016 to relocate 4,800 employees to the area in exchange for a $4.9 million economic grant and a temporary tax abatement.
For JPMorgan employees, a move comes with some perks. In New York's Tribeca neighborhood, $1.05 million will get you a 605-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment with an open kitchen, windowless bathroom and shared roof deck. In Plano, the same price gets you a 5,684-square-foot home with five bedrooms, six bathrooms, a 400-bottle wine room, a covered patio with wood-burning fireplace and a combined pool and spa.
It's sometimes hard to tell with these kinds of stories whether they are genuine moves or just part of negotiations to extract more subsidies and tax breaks out of the government of New York. There is probably some segment of JPMorgan Chase employees, and customers, who prefer New York City to Plano and who are willing to forego the 400-bottle wine room. The broader point that taxes and regulations affect business decisions about where to add jobs, though, is crucial, and too often ignored by politicians in New York.