Berkshire United Way Secures Grant to Fund Workplace Resource Coordinator
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire United Way has received a grant courtesy of Bank of America and United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley in the amount of $20,000 to assist in the creation of a new position designed to be a resource for employees to solve non-work related issues that ultimately cause personal and family stress.
This can impact their attendance and productivity, thus affecting their employer’s business. Greylock Federal Credit Union has also provided $5,000 to support this pioneering effort in Berkshire County.
Berkshire United Way’s Workplace Resource Coordinator will be located at participating local employers to connect employees with necessary resources. Examples of issues that the Workplace Resource Coordinator can assist with include outstanding medical bills, transportation, child care, debt collection, tax preparation, and financial literacy education.
“Our Workplace Resource Coordinator initiative is modeled on United Way of Chittenden County’s Working Bridges program in Chittenden, Vermont, which was introduced in 2007 and has been shown to improve workplace productivity, retention, advancement and general well-being of employees. For example, one local hospital’s turnover rate went from 30 to 60 percent down to 3 percent with $164,000 in communitywide savings because of lowered turnover costs,” said Kristine Hazzard, president and CEO, Berkshire United Way. “We believe having a person on-site at participating local workplaces is a great benefit to the employer, employee, and community as a whole. It promotes strong businesses and thus generates a thriving economy in the community. We’re grateful to Bank of America, United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley, and Greylock Federal Credit Union for making this program a reality in the Berkshires.”
Last year, Berkshire United Way held two Employer Community Conversations to gauge interest in program participation. As a result, six local employers have agreed to pilot the Workplace Resource Coordinator program in 2016, including Greylock Federal Credit Union, Boyd Technologies and The Brien Center for Mental Health and Substance Abuse. All of these employers are supporters of Berkshire United Way, through employee campaigns and/or corporate gifts, so this program will also strengthen the organization’s existing partnership and commitment to improving the quality of life in the Berkshires.
Employee appointments with the Workplace Resource Coordinator will be 15 to 30 minutes in length, scheduled during break times or during a supervisor-approved time period. The meetings are confidential unless an employee signs an authorization for the Coordinator to advocate or speak on their behalf, and the Coordinator will provide quarterly aggregate utilization reports to management. Financial literacy training as well as free tax preparation through the federal Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program will also be provided on site.
Those in applying for the Workplace Resource Coordinator position can find information at www.berkshireunitedway.org/employment.
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