Employee benefits

With staff scattered between working at home and in the office, management at many institutions has taken steps to revamp intranets and launch employee-only Facebook groups to keep their workforce connected.

More than a dozen institutions made the ranking this year in this asset category range.

These seven institutions have found innovative ways to engage employees and help staffers through the pandemic.

The pandemic has forced the institutions on this year's Best Credit Unions to Work For list to be more flexible with their policies for how and when employees take time off.

The annual ranking, a collaboration between Credit Union Journal and the Best Companies Group, involves surveying employees and reviewing each institution's workplace policies.

The coronavirus has created unprecedented challenges for employers but these credit unions rose to the occasion.

The Baltimore institution said it would close on Nov. 3 with the intention that employees use the paid time off to participate in the democratic process.

CEOs during CUNA Mutual Group's Discovery conference discussed giving workers more time off and taking other steps to keep up employee morale.

The financial services industry urged Gov. Tom Wolf to reconsider guidelines that excluded their employees from receiving this benefit.

Financial firms should offer debt consolidation and faster payment services to help employees who may be struggling through the coronavirus pandemic.

Credit Union of Texas, based near Dallas, is believed to be one of the first in the industry to debut this perk.

The coronavirus has highlighted the issue of millions of Americans lacking access to high-speed internet at their homes. Financial services firms weren't spared from this challenge.

Axcess Financial is using stronger authentication, studying up on bad actors and planning to use a federal service that automates verification of Social Security numbers.

With more employees than ever working from home due to the coronavirus, credit unions' networks may be less secure than usual. But purchasing cyber insurance to help cover the costs if a breach occurs isn't as clear cut as it may seem.

Some institutions may want to consider self-insurance to lower expenses as the coronavirus cuts into earnings.

Demand has soared for mental health services as bank employees put in long hours, supervise kids while working at home and endure personal crises. Citi, BofA, Fifth Third and others are getting creative to help them decompress during the pandemic.

A new study from MagnifyMoney shows nearly half of all consumers have stopped putting money aside for retirement during the pandemic, including 53% of baby boomers.

The Miramar, Fla.-based institution is spending $85,000 to help businesses as the economy begins reopening.

Employees of the $2.9 billion-asset credit union will receive one-time payments of $1,000, though executives and senior leaders are excluded.

Like other businesses, hospitals have been forced to make instant emergency changes because of the coronavirus. But many hospitals are concurrently getting a rush of demand for service with an unclear revenue stream.