Union SAFE Helps Workers During Hard Times

by James Parks, Apr 5, 2009

Working families in financial distress can turn for help to Union Plus, which provides consumer benefits to union members and retirees of participating unions.

The $3 million Union SAFE program—which stands for Security, Assistance and Financial Education—demonstrates the union movement’s answer to President Obama’s call for a new era of responsibility to help those who have fallen on hard times, says Leslie Tolf, president of Union Privilege, provider of the Union Plus benefits.

We are all hopeful today because President Obama is working to help middle class Americans struggling in this worsening recession. America’s unions and Union Plus are doing what we can right now to assist members in trouble—especially those who participate in a Union Plus program.

The new benefits program provides a wide array of benefits, including help for those suffering from layoffs to soaring hospital costs to problems paying mortgage to help saving for college. The benefits include:

• Credit counseling services, budgeting advice and no-fee debt management and bankruptcy counseling.
• Save My Home Hotline to help avoid mortgage foreclosure.
• Hospital Care Grants of $1,000 to help members who have been hit with large, unreimbursed hospital expenses who participate in the Union Plus Credit Card, Mortgage or UnionSecure Insurance programs.
• Job Loss Grants of $250 for Union Plus Credit Card holders who have been recently laid off for more than 90 days.
• Disability Grants of $1,000 to $2,000 for qualified Union Plus Credit Card holders who have significant income loss due to a recent long-term illness or disability.
• Mortgage Assistance to help Union Plus Mortgage holders who become unemployed, disabled or go on strike to make their mortgage payments.

To help members finance their children’s college educations, Union SAFE offers College Savings Grants of $500 to members who open new 529 tax-free college savings accounts or prepaid tuition accounts of at least $1,000 by June 30, 2009.

For more information and grant applications, click here.

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