WICHITA, Kan.–Meritrust Credit Union said that as part of an effort focused on the financial well-being of its staff, it will fund a $400 emergency savings account for every employee.
According to the credit union, on Dec. 22 employees will receive a one-time net deposit of $400, in addition to their regular paycheck. They are being encouraged to set it aside to start or grow their emergency savings fund.
Saying its purpose is to create financially healthy members and employees, Meritrust CU cited the 2022 Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households survey by the Federal Reserve that found that 37% of Americans do not have funds to cover a $400 emergency, which is an increase from the previous year of 32%.
Focus From Within
“We understand that in order to best serve our members, we have to focus on financial health from within,” said President/CEO James Nastars. “Knowing that our employees are equipped to not be part of that 37% is just one step in the process of supporting their financial well-being.”
In 2023, Meritrust noted it launched a financial well-being initiative for both members and employees centered around four financial pillars: Save, Spend, Borrow and Plan. The credit union said it is committed to helping consumers understand how their actions, behaviors and relationship with money affects their daily life and, in turn, empowers them with the tools they need to create a better financial future for themselves, their families and their communities.
‘Vitally Important’
“Saving is vitally important to our overall financial health,” added Chris Wolgamott, director of Financial Well-Being at Meritrust. “As we become more diligent with our emergency savings, we grow in confidence around our monthly spending, borrowing and overall planning.”
The credit union said the effort is one of many ways it supports employees along their financial journey, explaining that all Meritrust employees are eligible to receive confidential, one-on-one financial coaching services from the Financial Well-Being team and participate in annual financial education throughout the year.
The Best Gift to Unwrap This Holiday Season
The biggest, best and freshest news reporting in credit unions remains free! Each morning CUToday.info delivers its daily Fresh Today news update offering the latest headlines and breaking news right to your email, with the easy-to-read headlines format allowing you to click on the stories that interest you most in order to learn more. So stop paying those bank-fee-like subscription prices from other so-called “news” publications!
If you haven’t yet signed up for the new email solution on which CUToday.info has partnered with ResponseGenius, you can do so here. Signing up requires less than one minute of your time—and it’s free!
Please note that after signing up you may need to go to your Spam/Junk folder and mark the morning headlines email as safe. CUToday.info does not provide its list of readers and emails to outside parties, and we will not be contacting you to sell you an extended warranty or sending you any links so you may cash in on an inheritance you didn’t know was coming.
And did we mention it’s free?