ABBOTSFORD, B.C.–More than 100 employees have been laid off by Prospera Credit Union here, just a few months after its historic merger with Westminster Savings Credit Union in January.
The layoffs are the result of a “series of exceptional events,” including an economic downturn in early 2020, a significant drop in interest rates, a lack of turnover and the challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, Jeff McDonald, communications manager for Prospera Credit Union, told the Abbotsford news.
“Our plan was to take our time working through integration, taking advantage of natural attrition and turnover to reduce impacts on our valued employees,” McDonald told the publication. “Prospera faced these same difficult circumstances, along with other financial institutions, with the added challenge of running largely in parallel, with inefficiencies, duplication and overlapping operations inherent in a large merger.”
‘Hastened the Need to Cut’
The merger between the two credit unions followed 18 months of negotiations and a two-thirds vote in favor by both memberships. It is the largest merger in credit union history in Canada, creating the sixth-largest CU in the country at $9.5-billion in assets, with 120,000 members, 900 employees and 29 branches. An earlier planned merger between the two CUs in 2015 was called off.
McDonald told the Abbotsford News the joining of the two financial institutions was going to result in layoffs eventually, but recent economic events resulting from the pandemic hastened the need to cut “parallel operations, overlap, inefficiencies and duplication.”
McDonald said each employee will receive an extensive separation package, which includes severance, access to their employee and family assistance program, career transition support, and assistance accessing the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit.