CU of Southern California Helps Employees and Members Face Burdens of Coronavirus

ANAHEIM HILLS, CA (March 20, 2020) — To help manage financial hardship caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Credit Union of Southern California (CU SoCal) is giving every employee $1,000. The benefit extends to all employees regardless of length of employment and includes temporary workers.

“This is an unprecedented time that demands extraordinary action,” said CU SoCal CEO Dave Gunderson. “Disruptions from Coronavirus are causing financial strain for our employees and their families. We wanted to provide help early on to help ease some of these burdens.”

“In my more than two decades with CU SoCal, we have not laid off a team member. We remain passionate about continuing that tradition. However, the spouses and adult children of some CU SoCal team members are beginning to experience reduction in work hours at their jobs, and it’s likely that some households will experience layoffs in the near future due to the dramatic decline in business activity,” Gunderson added.

A week prior to Congress passing the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, CU SoCal announced to employees that it would provide 80 hours of paid sick leave for employees dealing with Coronavirus.

“The credit union’s paid sick leave criteria will now mirror the Families First Coronavirus Response Act” said Gunderson. He added that CU SoCal will also allow employees to go negative up to 80 hours in personal time off (PTO) after exhausting their PTO balance.

CU SoCal has also taken steps to help members cope with the fallout from COVID-19 with the following programs:

• To bolster their personal cash flow, members have the option of skipping payments on all consumer loans for 60 days. Interest will continue to accrue.

• Eligible members from its Preferred Partner employer groups are pre-qualified for a $1,500 loan with a 9.99 percent APR and can defer payments for 90 days—with just a signature and no credit check. CU SoCal is contacting its Preferred Partners to let them know their employees are eligible for the loan.

• Member households may apply for a Coronavirus (COVID-19) Emergency Loan of up to $10,000 per household. A signature loan that carries a fixed rate of 3.25 percent APR for a term of up to five years, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Emergency Loan also offers a deferred payment of 90 days.

CU SoCal personnel are also making outbound calls to the credit union’s senior citizen members for wellness checks and to help them obtain groceries and other household essentials.

“We’re grateful that we’re in a position to help ease financial burdens for our member households at a time when they need us the most,” said CU SoCal Chief Communications and Experience Officer Michelle Hunter.  “At a time of fear and uncertainty, we want our members to know that their concerns are our concerns, and we are here to support them and their families.”

About Credit Union of Southern California (CU SoCal)

Founded in 1954 as Whittier Area Schools Federal Credit Union, CU SoCal has a five-star financial rating from BauerFinancial, a nationally recognized independent bank research firm, and was named one of the Best Places to Work in 2018 by the Orange County Register. Today, CU SoCal has more than $1.7 billion in assets and is dedicated to Building Better Lives for more than 121,000 Member-Owners through World-Class Service and Convenience. Membership is open to those who live, work, worship, or attend school in Los Angeles County, Orange County, Riverside County or San Bernardino County. For more information, visit CUSoCal.org.