FAIRFIELD, Ohio — Jose de los Santos was living in Puerto Rico when his family relocated to Fairfield for better job opportunities. He wasn’t expecting to find a job that came with a bank account, but that’s exactly what he got at M. Bohlke Veneer Corp.
“I’ve had a bank account before, but it was shared among other family members,” de los Santos said through an interpreter. “Having a bank account of my own, I’ve been able to handle my finances better because I can control it from my computer and my telephone, and I can save for future expenses.”
His account is one of about 2,000 created by First Financial Bank’s Worklife program, a financial wellness initiative that aims to gain customers by helping companies reduce the financial stress of their employees.
It’s also part of a national trend toward reducing the unbanked.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced last fall that 4.5% of U.S. households had no bank or credit union account, according to a survey it conducted in 2021. That’s down from a peak of 8.2% unbanked households in 2011. But the rate remained higher for minority households, including Hispanics, at 9.3%.
The FDIC has been trying to reduce that rate because unbanked households are more vulnerable to bank fees, theft and predatory lending.
That, though, isn’t why Bohlke Veneer signed onto the program. Nick Bohlke, president of manufacturing for the family-owned company, said they were having trouble recruiting employees during the pandemic.
“A lot of the prospective employees didn’t have a bank account,” Bohlke said. “And since we became strictly direct deposit, that became a hindrance.”
But Bohlke was pleasantly surprised when the new initiative helped him not only attract but retain Hispanic employees.
“When you assist them in starting a bank account, it’s something where they get direct deposit, their paycheck every week and it starts to build, they realize that they understand the banking structure. They build a little trust obviously with the bank, but they also build trust with us as an employer. So, it’s a three-way mutual relationship,” Bohlke said.
First Financial has established nearly 500 new corporate relationships with Worklife, said Program Manager Kay Burke. It also established about 400 new loan accounts from the initiative. That’s because the program offers financial literacy training as part of its services.
“It can be as simple as budgeting, using a debit card, paying bills, on up to building credit and investing,” said Cassie Stevens, manager of the First Financial office where about 50 Bohlke employees signed up. “We have 401(k) and all that too.”
Bohlke is hoping the program can build employee loyalty over time.
“We want to do something more than just like, ‘Here’s a bank account. Show up to work every day.’ We want it to be like, ‘Here’s the trust we’re building with you. Here’s the tools we’re going to give you.’ And hopefully, in return, they can find a way to make a career out of it,” he said.
It seems to be working for de los Santos, who is taking online courses to learn accounting and finance and saving money for the future.
“I’m only 22 years old,” said de los Santos. “I hope to have a family and one day hope to grow my career and be able to invest in real estate.”
