Wisconsin CU League News Release - 02/14/11
WI employers vie for free staff training that will help employees,
boost productivity
Companies to enroll 4,000 employees in a financial literacy program
that offers $400,000 in value for WI firms
Pewaukee, Wis. – Wisconsin companies are lining up fast
to enroll their staff in the Investor Education In Your Workplace™
program, a grant-funded program that offers employees 10 hours of
self-paced, unbiased online training on money & investing. As many
as 4,000 Wisconsin workers could soon become more financially fit thanks
to the program that, in addition to offering $400,000 in free training
value to Wisconsin firms, may offer improved bottom-line results for
participating companies.
“When employees are financially fit, that can help the companies
they work for,” said Brett Thompson, President & CEO of the
Wisconsin Credit Union League. “Studies have proven that
financially savvy employees are less stressed, happier and more
productive. And companies that help their staff achieve peace of mind
with their pocketbooks often see fewer workplace distractions, improved
employee morale, reduced absenteeism and decreased turnover.”
Companies seeking more information can register for a free webinar
planned for 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 23 that
will explain the program in detail. The webinar repeats on March 2.
Companies that wish to participate should register immediately for
either session since demand is expected to exceed capacity. Questions
should be directed to Ellen Smith at (608) 205-4046 or by email at ellen@educatedinvestor.com.
More than 3,500 employees from 80 credit unions – member-owned
financial institutions – completed 30,000 hours of investment
education in 2009 – the year the program was developed and piloted
in the United States. Twenty-two of those employees received advanced
training in 2010 to become Certified Financial Educators®
(CFEd®) – a nationally recognized designation by the
Heartland Institute. This year those specially trained community
educators will offer the same basic online program they initially
completed to employers across the state.
The Certified Financial Educators® will help recruit participating
companies, coordinate the online training for firms in their area and
coach participating learners. These trainers are impartial educators
tasked with imparting a command of basic investment and financial
literacy concepts. They are strictly bound by a code of conduct to
provide unbiased information and not promote specific financial
products, partners or services, making them a valuable third party and
objective “coach” to help employees and employers alike.
The online coursework, which engages learners at their own pace, focuses
on investing concepts including setting goals, planning for educational
needs as well as financial emergencies, distinguishing among investment
vehicles, managing risk, diversifying a portfolio, maximizing tax
advantages, understanding mutual funds and working with investment
professionals.
Credit union employees who completed the program achieved tremendous
success: an average passing grade of 87.69% on coursework and an average
23.31% improvement in knowledge. Furthermore, they used that knowledge
to make many positive changes in their financial behaviors including 5%
to 50% increases in the number of participants to create a family
budget; set short-, medium- and long-term goals, as well as make regular
contributions to a tax-deferred retirement plan like an IRA or
401(k).
“The goal is to debunk a common fallacy that has prevented most
Americans from doing the basic investing they’ll need to secure
their futures,” Thompson explained. “Workers often
mistakenly believe that they can never get ahead financially because
they have too few dollars to invest and that common expenses will derail
those efforts. But that’s not true. Every person with income, no
matter how modest, can turn small contributions to investment accounts
into significant assets while at the same time planning for life’s
inevitable financial emergencies.”
“We can’t afford to let individuals’ failure to plan
for their futures become an enormous public burden. That would be
totally unsustainable,” Thompson continued. “So we’ve
turned to the workplace, which has proven an effective environment for
basic financial learning, to ensure that average working people take
simple steps to improve their financial security. And that includes
people living paycheck to paycheck, whether they are making modest wages
or above average salaries. Both types of earners, if not investing, will
have troubled futures.”
Participating companies will be encouraged to allow employees to engage
in the coursework during working hours although that is not required.
Employee participation will be strictly voluntary. Companies will
receive materials to facilitate employee involvement, including posters,
PowerPoint presentations and more. Additional webinars will be offered
throughout the duration of the program – which is expected to
begin in April and end in July – to encourage progress. Employees
will be recognized with certificates and companies will achieve
recognition – at gold, silver and bronze levels – for
varying levels of staff participation.
The Investor Education in Your Workplace™ program was so
successful for Wisconsin credit unions – which called their pilot
program Real Progress & Pathways to Prosperity (or RP3) – that
credit unions in Pennsylvania and North Carolina have also enrolled in
hopes of replicating that success. They, too, hope not only to stimulate
investing among credit union members in their respective states, but
also to turn out advanced investment grads who can offer the same basic,
online investing program in additional workplaces.
Credit unions are
participating in the project as part of their REAL Solutions initiative,
which helps people of all incomes build wealth. As not-for-profits
without stockholders, credit unions’ role is to help people
regardless of profit.
Additional Partners include the Puelicher Center for Banking Education
at the Wisconsin
School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Precision Information and
the Wisconsin Department of
Financial Institutions.
Funding for the program includes more than $250,000 in grants from the
Investor Protection Trust (IPT), a nonprofit organization devoted to
investor education. Since 1993 the IPT has worked with the states to
provide the independent, objective investor education needed by all
Americans to make informed investment decisions. Visit www.investorprotection.org.
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