Labor & Employment Law

Hundreds of Union Members Try to ?Save the Dream? of Home Ownership

By James Parks

Even though JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have declared temporary moratoriums on foreclosures, millions of Americans still face the prospect of losing their homes. And union members are not exempt. Last week, hundreds of union members in danger of foreclosure attended two workshops sponsored by the nonprofit Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA) in hopes of being able to continue the American Dream of homeownership.   

Counselors and lenders were on hand at the two Save-the-Dream workshops?one in Los Angeles and another in Sacramento, Calif.–to help people who cannot afford their mortgages. At similar events, NACA says it has been able to help about 80 percent of participants, with many households lowering their mortgage interest rates to 2 percent. That success rate, coupled with media coverage, ensured that both events would have overflow crowds.

AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Arlene Holt Baker, visiting with union members participating in the Sacramento event, noted the importance of electing leaders in November who will fight to create thousands of American jobs. And the nation?s banks must do more to stop foreclosures, she added:

Unemployment is the leading cause of foreclosure, and millions of homeowners have lost their jobs because of the financial crisis and economic recession. Foreclosures hurt the property values of neighborhoods, the credit ratings of homeowners and the possibility of an economic recovery. The same banks that caused the financial crisis must now do the right thing and stop home foreclosures.

AFL-CIO staff also briefed the union members on the federation?s Community Services program and the Working America-AFL-CIO Unemployment Lifeline website, a one-stop guide that links jobless workers to local resources, from unemployment offices to veterans’ services and child care.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on October 12, 2010 (boomark / email).