NORWICH — NBT Bank has launched a student-loan repayment program in response to what it calls a “troubling trend.” The program seeks to help reduce the outstanding balance on qualifying student loans for full-time employees as part of its financial-wellness initiatives. The bank says student loan debt is a “challenge gripping the nation with […]
NORWICH — NBT Bank has launched a student-loan repayment program in response to what it calls a “troubling trend.”
The program seeks to help reduce the outstanding balance on qualifying student loans for full-time employees as part of its financial-wellness initiatives.
The bank says student loan debt is a “challenge gripping the nation with $1.5 trillion in debt; transcending all generations.” It also says statistics indicate that nearly one-third of borrowers are over the age of 40.
News stories about the topic indicate how student loan debt “really affects” borrowers’ physical and financial and emotional well-being, says Catherine Scarlett, chief human resources & ethics officer at NBT Bank.
“We felt that trying to assist our employees with that burden was helpful to them and also just something that we felt was the right thing to do,” says Scarlett, who spoke with CNYBJ on Jan. 24.
Scarlett also noted NBT Bank is among 8 percent of companies nationwide that offer the benefit.
The NBT program offers contributions in the amount of $100 per month for the qualifying loans of full-time employees for up to 60 months. To be a qualifying loan, Scarlett says, it has to be from an accredited institution that has a degree program.
“It’s $100 per month for 60 months and that is paid directly to the principal … on the loan. The employee would pay right to their loan provider,” she explains.
All of NBT’s full-time employees are eligible for the program from their date of hire.
NBT Bank declined to disclose how much money it has budgeted for this benefit.
Scarlett noted that the student-loan repayment program was on NBT Bank’s business plan for investigation in 2019 and implementation in 2020.
When asked if NBT Bank hopes the repayment program will help it attract new employees, Scarlett said that attracting talent is important but retaining and helping current employees is also vital.
“It’s really a big stress for our employees … financial stress … really helping our current employees and retaining them, I would say, is just as important,” says Scarlett.
Richard (Rick) Shirtz, regional president for NBT Bank, says likes that the bank is offering this benefit, even though not all of the bank’s full-time employees has a student-loan concern.
“There are a number that do and those are the ones that are burdened for repaying that and we’re just willing to help them out because that’s something that … separates us from the pack,” says Shirtz, who also spoke during the Jan. 24 conference call.
Besides the student-loan repayment program, NBT Bank has also “reevaluated and updated” several other employee benefits. They include a new paid parental leave policy that will provide mothers and fathers paid time off at 100 percent of pay following a birth, adoption, or foster placement. This benefit is “over and above” other paid time off, NBT Bank said.
NBT Bank offers personal banking, business banking, and wealth-management services from locations in seven states, including New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Connecticut. The bank and its parent company, NBT Bancorp (NASDAQ: NBTB), are headquartered in Norwich.
NBT Bancorp had assets of $9.7 billion as of Dec 31.
