DALLAS—How are credit unions compensating directors?
Some answers to that question are being provided in a new Compensation Survey just released by the Cornerstone CU League here, which serves credit unions in Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Among the findings:
- 5% of responding credit unions reported paying directors to attend board meetings and committee meetings. “The likelihood of doing so does not appear to be correlated with asset size; that is, small, medium, and large-size credit unions are about equally likely to provide this type of compensation,” the league said. However, charter type does appear to make a difference, with 11% of state chartered credit unions compensating for meeting attendance, versus 2% of federally chartered institutions.
- Overall, the median amount paid per director per meeting was $42. The average was higher among state than federally chartered credit unions ($50 versus $12), and highest by far among the largest credit unions ($300 among institutions with assets over $250 million).
- The practice of covering expenses for directors to attend conferences or educational programs was prevalent, with 86% of all respondents doing so. “While the likelihood of providing this form of compensation was similar between state and federal credit unions—88% and 85%, respectively—the likelihood increased as asset size increased from 73% of credit unions with assets under $5 million to 100% of the over $250 million group,” the league said in its analysis.
- The median amount budgeted annually for each volunteer to attend conferences or educational programs was $1,250, with the figure being somewhat larger among state than federal credit unions ($1,750 versus $1,000). The median amount was positively related to asset size, increasing from $1,000 for credit unions with assets under $5 million to $5,000 for those whose assets were more than $250 million, according to the Cornerstone league.
- Survey participants also listed additional forms of compensation they provide to their directors. Appearing with the greatest frequency were iPads, AD&D, Internet access, and life insurance. This was followed by other types of compensation, including lunch at board meetings, health insurance, the waiving of credit union fees, fitness memberships, free checks, and computers.