JACKSON, Mich.–American 1 Credit Union has announced a new compensation strategy for its 187 employees.
The new compensation plan, which took effect on April 25, 2018, increases wages for every position at American 1, with the exception of the CEO, and comes at an annual cost of $954,405.00 in increased compensation, American 1 reported.
American 1’s President/CEO, Martha Fuerstenau, announced the wage increase to all American 1 employees at the credit union’s quarterly staff meeting.
“Credit unions are cooperatives. We provide financial services to members and, when we are as successful as American 1 is, we make it a priority to give back as much as possible to our members. In the past two years alone, we’ve had the pleasure of giving back more than $2.58 million to our members,” said Fuerstenau in a statement. “It simply makes good business sense to give back to our employees. Our sustained growth and incredible financial strength is driven by member satisfaction. Member satisfaction is directly related to the level of service and care our staff provides to our members every day. Our executive team and board of directors are delighted to implement this change. I also believe that higher wages will help us recruit more great people to join our growing team.”
The new compensation strategy includes an increase in the credit union’s minimum wage to $13 per hour. The minimum wage is the hourly rate of pay for new employees who have no previous experience in financial services, and is an 18% jump in pay for new hires, American 1 said. The rise in wages for hourly staff represents 74% of the total increase.
American 1 said it offers an extensive list of benefits that include health, dental, and vision insurance at no cost to full-time employees, in addition to student loan repayment, college tuition reimbursement, and retirement benefits, as well as more traditional perks such as paid vacation and paid personal time.
“One of the most exciting things about the wage increase,” expressed Laura Pryor, vice president of marketing and communications, “is that this investment of nearly one million dollars in our staff will directly impact the communities where we live and transact business. Ultimately, this is American 1 Credit Union giving back to our community in a new and ongoing way.”