Morgan Stanley announced the promotion of 210 employees to managing director on Tuesday, a smaller lot than the previous year as the Wall Street bank's overall workforce shrank.

For 2010, Morgan Stanley promoted 232 employees to managing director, up from the 212 workers who received the title in 2009 and the 133 who were promoted in 2008.

Managing director is a coveted title at Wall Street banks that is bestowed on a relatively small pool of employees each year. The mantle comes with higher pay and more responsibility but in an uncertain work environment for bankers and traders -- with thousands of job cuts across Wall Street -- it also offers the newly promoted a modicum of job security.

In mid-December, Morgan Stanley announced plans to lay off 1,600 employees across its investment banking and trading operations, in addition to hundreds of job cuts that earlier took place at its wealth management division. On December 31, Morgan Stanley had 642 fewer workers on its payroll than a year earlier.

Its chief rival, Goldman Sachs Group Inc , promoted 261 employees to managing director in November, a 19 percent drop from the previous year. Goldman cut 2,400 jobs in 2011.

(Reporting By Lauren Tara LaCapra; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)

Morgan Stanley