CO-OP WEEK 2020: A MESSAGE TO LECU’S MEMBERS

Today marks the last day of co-op week, a time to reflect on the success of the co-op model in today’s society. It is important to celebrate this success because, unlike other business models, co-operative enterprises provide benefits to a wider group of stakeholders. Traditionally, co-ops were formed to meet a community need, however today they are thriving businesses competing in many industries.

Many co-ops compete shoulder-to-shoulder with ‘traditional’ businesses and, on the outside, they may appear to be just like any other business. The key difference, however, it in the very DNA of the co-operative model. Co-ops have a mandate to improve the lives of people and the communities in which they live while delivering a good or service. The co-op model also provides ownership in the business so the very users of the service can influence the strategic direction of the organization.

One of the most common misconceptions about co-operatives is that they are all non-profits. While there are many non-profit, community services co-ops out there (our own Growing Our Future Childcare Co-op is one example), many co-ops are thriving businesses that must focus on sustainable profit. The difference with co-ops is in what they DO with the profit. Co-ops are ‘profit for purpose’ organizations and they have mandates that their profits must serve the greater good of their stakeholders in line with the seven co-operative principles.

Imagine for a moment, a banking system where people would be provided the best advice, competitive pricing, access to all the products and services they need, AND that organization would in return help your community through donations, leadership and volunteerism. To even add more value, imagine that if that banking institution at the end of the year recorded surplus earnings, you would receive a portion of that surplus back. Also imagine that if you didn’t like some of the activities that the business was doing, you could voice your concerns and the entity would actually listen.

I’m happy to tell you that this “unicorn” bank actually exists; it’s a credit union. In Canada, there are 1,173 credit union locations representing $260 Billion in assets serving 5.88 million members. In Newfoundland and Labrador, there are 62,000 members of credit unions.

The co-op model works. And not only do we need more co-ops in this province, we also need more people to support the existing co-ops and credit unions so more good can be done. Here at Leading Edge Credit Union, we encourage members to continue to recruit friends and family to become members of the credit union and share in our success. We will continue as a financial co-operative to provide members honest advice while working towards ways to improve our communities. The support that each member provides by continuing to do more business with the credit union further cycles the benefits back to members and their communities.

Happy Co-op Week, everyone!

Cory

 

 

COVID-19

During such uncertain times, our thoughts turn to the essentials. At Leading Edge Credit Union, our priority is the health and safety of our members and employees - and we want to ensure you receive the financial services you need in the safest way possible.  

You will notice that we are limiting the number of members who are able to be in the branch at any one time and we are also temporarily changing our in-branch banking service hours to 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, Monday to Friday. This decision was made in the best interest of everyone, but I want to assure you that we remain open and able to support our members, over the phone, weekdays from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. And, as always, our online, mobile, and telephone banking services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To learn more about how we can provide you with safe and convenient banking services, please call us, message us on social media or visit us at lecu.ca. 

At this highly stressful time, we feel that it is our job to help our members focus on what is important: the health and well-being of themselves, their families and loved ones. Some of you may be facing financial hardships as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. I want you to know that you can count on us to work with you to find solutions to your financial needs. As always, we are here to help you, your businesses and our communities.  

I’d like to take this opportunity to say thank you, our members for their incredible support in helping us reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 by practicing physical distancing and embracing new forms of banking. Our strong sense of community and willingness to make sacrifices for the common good will get us through these challenging times. I also want to thank all of the incredible front line workers in our communities whose dedication and sacrifice make life better, and safer, for everyone.  

And finally, I want to thank our staff. Our world has changed but our members’ need for honest and trustworthy financial services remains. Our professional and dedicated staff are committed to being there for our members. Time and time again, our members have told us that one of the most important reasons they chose to bank with us is our people. To honour their commitment, we are giving back to our staff by reducing their work hours to give them extra time off, with pay, to care for themselves and their loved ones. 

These are unprecedented times, but we are resilient people and, together, we will get through this. On behalf of myself and the Board of Directors of Leading Edge, stay safe and healthy.