Banks offer relief to furloughed workers

Several banks are offering relief for furloughed federal workers who missed their first paychecks on Friday amid the ongoing partial government shutdown. 

Oklahoma’s First Oklahoma Bank says it will cover customers who aren’t getting paid during the shutdown. KJRH reported Friday that the bank said it will cover customers free of charge, even if they miss a deposit.

{mosads}“We’d like to tell all these federal government employees and others affected by this that we appreciate your service to the country,” bank chairman Tom Bennett said, according to the outlet.

Alpine Bank in Colorado set aside $5 million to help furloughed workers pay their rent and mortgages, The Aspen Times reports.

“We welcome those affected federal workers, whether they’re customers of Alpine or not,” regional bank president Michael Brown said. “We’ll loan them their next paycheck, and no collateral is required.”

Alpine Banks, which operates throughout Colorado, said it will also provide interest-free loans to furloughed federal employees.

Major banks across the U.S., including Bank of America, Citi and Wells Fargo, previously rolled out assistance programs for federal workers affected by the partial shutdown. 

The government entered a partial shutdown on Dec. 22 amid an impasse between lawmakers and the White House over President Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion in border wall funding. Roughly 800,000 federal employees have been furloughed or forced to work without pay during the shutdown, which entered its 21st day on Friday.