Labor & Employment Law

Union Plus Can Help with Debt, Credit Problems

By admin

Patti Schlittenhart

Jennifer Wright Dorr at Union Plus sends us this feature examining Union Plus credit and debt counseling services for union members.

 Desperately wishing to be free of debt, America’s workers too often turn to unscrupulous and ineffective debt reduction companies for help. But Patti Schlittenhart, a member of California School Employees Association (CSEA) Local 248, made a better choice. When she realized she needed help with her budget, she turned to the Union Plus Credit Counseling program because she ?knew that if the service was backed by the union, it had to be reputable.?

Trust in the program is well placed. For more than a decade, the Union Plus Credit Counseling program has helped union families get out of debt through free counseling and debt management plans (DMP) with low fees.

Schlittenhart, a four-year union member from Downey, Calif., and a senior instructional assistant, says the program ?has been a tremendous help.?

The program is working so well for our family. It has relieved a lot of stress and resulted in savings for our family. I think it?s a union benefit that more families should consider. I?m looking forward to becoming debt-free.

Living without high debt is becoming increasingly difficult to do. In fact, according to a Federal Reserve study, some 43 percent of U.S. families spend more than they earn.

Union Plus, which takes pride in responding to the needs of union members, offers a number of programs that reflect today?s difficult economy. Through the Union Plus Credit Counseling program (click here), union members can access free credit and budget counseling either on the phone 24/7 or in person at more than 100 locations nationwide. You do not need a Union Plus Credit Card to use this benefit. The free session includes:

• Complete financial review, budget analysis and credit management counseling;
• Assistance in budgeting, or advice on sources of additional income;
• Advice on how to work with creditors;
• A written action plan that summarizes your financial situation, provides a budget and timeline for reaching your debt management and repayment goals and restates actions items; and
• Referrals to social service organizations in your area, if appropriate.

For those who need additional assistance, a DMP is available. The DMP allows participants to make one monthly payment to the provider of the credit counseling program, who in turn pays all creditors. Union Plus waives the set-up fee for union members for an initial DMP. After the first year of successful participation, 12 months of DMP fees are reimbursed to union members.

Schlittenhart has been participating in a DMP for just under two years. DMP helped re-negotiate her debt and set up a payment plan that she could handle. In fact, the single monthly payment she makes now is less than the combined amount of the various bills she had been juggling.

It?s so much easier to make only one payment each month. I also appreciated receiving $360 in reimbursement. My school job hadn?t started yet, so it was nice getting a check in the mail.

The Union Plus Credit Counseling Program is just one of many unique benefits offered by Union Plus aimed at helping union families during this difficult economic downswing. If you have had a Union Plus Mortgage or credit card for at least a year and are facing financial difficulty, the Union SAFE program may offer assistance. Unemployment, disability and hospital care grants are available to Union Plus program participants.

Even if you do not participate in a Union Plus program, help still may be available through education grants and free foreclosure prevention counseling, bankruptcy counseling and a medical bill negotiation service.

Union Plus also offers discounts on AT&T wireless service, college test preparation, Goodyear tires, car rentals, movie tickets and much more. To learn about the more than 40 Union Plus programs available to union members, visit UnionPlus.org.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on January 21, 2011 (boomark / email).