Terminating jobs can be different from terminating employment.

“We are committed to retaining as many team members as possible and will do everything we can to help them identify other opportunities within Wells Fargo,” Steve Carlson, Wells Fargo vice president of communications, said in an email.

The company currently has postings for more than 350 Iowa-based positions, mostly in Greater Des Moines. 

“In addition, we anticipate posting an additional 295 positions in metropolitan Des Moines in the next 30 days. Eligible team members, including those who received pre-notices or 60-day notices today, may apply for current open positions as well as those that will be posted soon,” Carlson said.

Wells Fargo employs more than 15,500 people in Iowa, with about 14,000 of those workers located in Greater Des Moines.

In September, Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan said the mega-bank was “continuing to transform Wells Fargo to deliver what customers want – including innovative, customer-friendly products and services – and evolving our business model to meet those needs in a more streamlined and efficient manner.”

The job cuts today are part of that process.

“This very difficult decision was made following much thought and careful consideration. It in no way reflects the quality or performance of these team members. The team members affected by these changes have each been an essential part of our success,” Carlson said.

With few exceptions, the majority of jobs eliminated in Greater Des Moines are in servicing insurance/investor claims and default accounts payable groups, he said.

“The primary driver of this change is that the volume of claims managed by the team is down nearly 70 percent since January 2017, which is the outcome of positive improvements in the housing economy and lower customer delinquency,” Carlson said.