Credit Union Reaches Out to Under-Served Community

A Salinas-based credit union has launched an ambitious growth strategy that focuses on acquiring new members from historically under-served communities such as farm workers. AllUS Credit Union, formerly the Monterey County Employees Credit Union, held a workshop Wednesday at the National Steinbeck Center to unveil its fledgling effort to sign up more under-served populations in the region, including seniors, the disabled and farm laborers. The credit union was launched in 1950 as the financial institution for employees of Monterey County, but it has expanded its charter to include any customer living or working in Monterey County. It changed its name late last year to reflect its broadened customer base. Chief Executive Officer Patrick Redo laid out what can be considered both a marketing effort and a strategic business plan to representatives of nonprofit groups Wednesday, highlighting data that point to a severe gap between financial institutions and the African-American, Latino and low-income communities. Nationally, more than four in 10 people making $30,000 or less annually have relationships with financial institutions, or if they do, its minimal, Redo said. In banking parlance they are called the "un-banked" and "under-banked." Under-banked refers to those who might have a small savings account, for example, but not checking accounts, access to loans or other services that most in America do. Ethnically, 54 percent of black residents are un- or under-banked, and 43 percent of Latinos have no or little relationship with banks or credit unions. That compares with 18 percent of the white population, Redo said. Salinas has more than 11,600 un-banked households, he said. The reasons for those numbers vary dramatically among cultures but include being intimidated, fearful particularly for the undocumented and unfamiliar with how financial institutions work in this country. Robin Ceralde, loan manager for allUS, provided an example of how a community-based credit union can tailor lending to meet the often unique needs of farm laborers. Farm workers are often seasonally employed, receiving a paycheck from planting through harvest but then relying on unemployment benefits the other half of the year.