Member Stories

Soon after Christina Coady married her husband, an International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) member, the couple bought their first home together.

"We were living in a garage turned into a house and were paying rent,” Coady recalled. “I had never owned a home. We found a beautiful home in downtown Springfield. I fell in love with it as soon as I walked in the door."

Coady, who now runs her own bakery business, knew she could access VA loans from her time in the military. She didn’t know that her husband’s union membership would also play a role in the home buying process.

"Our realtor told us that Wells Fargo participated in the Union Plus Mortgage Program," Coady said. "She referred us to a Wells Fargo mortgage consultant, and we met all the qualifications. Everything was perfect and it all just worked."

The couple felt particularly good about the inclusion of hardship assistance with every Union Plus mortgage in case of layoff or other involuntary unemployment.

"It’s good to know it’s available if I need it in a harder time,” Coady said. “The fact that Union Plus had a sort of insurance in case anything happened sold me on it."

Union members who purchase or refinance a home with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage through the Union Plus Mortgage Program get a $300 award for refinancing and $500 award for home purchases.¹ Additional benefits for veterans are available from Union Plus. All Union Plus mortgages include access to the Union Plus Mortgage Assistance Program, which provides interest-free loans and grants from Union Plus when members out are out of work due to a union-approved strike, lockout, involuntary unemployment, or disability².

Coady described her first home buying experience as “pleasant and positive” and recommended the Union Plus Mortgage Program to other union families.

Visit unionplus.org/mortgage to learn more.

Georgia Veiga has been a proud member of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) C 63, Local 3440 in New Jersey for the last 17 years. She regularly seeks out opportunities to support companies that employ union workers.

She was happy to do just that when she switched to AT&T for her family’s smartphone service after receiving an email about the Union Plus AT&T Discount Program. She learned that Union Plus offers an AT&T switch rebate and smartphone upgrade rebate to Union Plus Credit Cardholders¹. The email came at the right time for Veiga, who was an unhappy customer of another cell phone carrier at the time.

"AT&T’s service is better, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to switch," Veiga says. In addition, AT&T employs more than 94,000 union members as the only nationwide unionized wireless carrier.

"They’re a family, they seem happy," Veiga says of the customer service she’s experienced with AT&T.

Because Veiga switched carriers and upgraded to a new smartphone, she qualified for $250 in rebates².

The rebate money quickly came in handy when Veiga added her tween daughter as one of the four lines on her AT&T phone plan and the family’s data usage increased dramatically.

"It has been glued to her head," Veiga says of her daughter’s phone.

According to Veiga, the AT&T Smartphone Upgrade Rebate application process was easy. Union members and retirees also save 15 percent on the monthly service charge of qualified wireless plans³ and get 20 percent off eligible accessories⁴, among other AT&T benefits.

"I appreciate all the benefits made available through the union," she says. "It’s a wonderful program."

To learn more about the Union Plus AT&T Discount Program, visit unionplus.org/att.

Randy Redd, a writer and director based in Memphis, Tenn., has been a member of the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) for 30 years and of SAG-AFTRA for nearly as long.

"I joined as an actor in ’90," Redd recalls. "It wasn’t until years and years later that I realized that the union is also affiliated with discount programs." 

Redd was looking for a dentist a few years ago but felt discouraged by the expense of dental insurance. Instead, he turned to the Union Plus Dental Discount Plan, available through Careington.

"It seemed too good to be true at first," Redd describes. "But I saw a fantastic dentist who’s in the plan who just blew my mind. As a result of the discount plan, the cost is so low, and so affordable, for really first-rate care." 

Through the Dental Discount Plan, union members, retirees, and their household family members can sign up and enjoy savings of 20% to 50% on dental care with one of the largest dental networks in the nation. Plans start at $7.95/month*.

"I had a great experience," Redd raves. "It’s really easy to find your way through Careington’s list of providers." 

Redd recommends the Dental Discount Plan to other union members "all the time," he says.

He continues, "With Careington, I could get checkups and cleanings and regular care at the same level of care I’d been getting under any other plan. And the discounts are incredible. I had to get a root canal, and it’s incredible what I paid for that." 

To learn more about the Union Plus Dental Discount Plan and other health savings options, visit unionplus.org/healthsavings.

Chicago-area resident Sherri Miller has been an Illinois state employee and an American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 31, Local 1006 member for the last 20 years.

She says, "I really love my union!"

Last year, Miller got a Union Plus email about Union Plus Mortgage Company in the middle of her home search and ended up choosing them as her mortgage provider.

"It was great timing," Miller recalls. "It was like someone was reading my mind."

The Union Plus Mortgage Program, with financing available through Union Plus Mortgage Company, is available for all eligible union members. The Union Plus Mortgage Company is union-owned and staffed by knowledgeable loan officers.

For qualifying members, there are special benefits for first-time homebuyers as well as:

• A $500 gift card after closing for purchasing or refinancing a home
• Special mortgage payment assistance from Union Plus in the event of income loss due to unemployment, disability, strike, lockout or furlough.

"This was my first home purchase, and it was a great experience," Miller says. "The process was really, really easy. They were patient, they were helpful, and whenever I had questions, they were always available."

Miller was especially appreciative of the flexibility of communicating with her Union Plus Mortgage Company contacts.

"They were really considerate of my time," she says. "With my job, I have to be on the phones all day. If they needed me, they would text me or email me. It made it all a lot easier and took a lot of stress off this whole process."

Now that she's settled into her home and has even refinanced it once – again through Union Plus Mortgage Company – Miller is spreading the word.

"I've been telling everybody about Union Plus Mortgage Company," she says.

To learn more about Union Plus Mortgage Company, call 855 UNION 27 (855-864-6627) or visit unionplusmortgage.com.

Lisa Pedersen, of Revere, Mass., is trailblazer in her field. She says she was "the first girl in [her] area" when she started as a gas leak investigator and repair person for the National Grid.

"I've been with the same company and the United Steelworkers for 33 years," Pedersen, a member of USW Local 120124 says.

When her workforce was tested by a seven-month long work stoppage recently, Pedersen counted herself lucky to have a powerful tool on her side: her Union Plus mortgage.

Pedersen and her husband refinanced their house around 2005 with the Union Plus Mortgage Program. A major draw was the payment assistance program.

"I heard about the Mortgage Assistance Program, which helps make payments when you're out of work," Pedersen recalls. "I had seen the difficulties for other people during a prior work stoppage and heard about the Union Plus strike benefits."

The Union Plus Mortgage Assistance Program provides interest-free loans and grants to help union members make mortgage payments when they're disabled, unemployed, furloughed, locked out or on strike. Eligible members must have had a Union Plus mortgage for at least a year.

A Mortgage Assistance strike grant ended up covering Pedersen's mortgage during three critical months in the winter, when her husband wasn't working his seasonal job as a lobsterman.

"I'm blown away by the Mortgage Assistance Program," Pedersen says. "I want people to understand how much you gave to us. I'm so grateful."

She considers the Union Plus Mortgage Program to be a unique asset of her union membership.

"Having this program available is invaluable. If there's something like that offered to you, you have to have it," Pedersen emphasizes.

Learn MORE ABOUT
UNION PLUS MORTGAGE PROGRAM

Derek Gusoskey has worked in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard since 2013 as a member of International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB). He's a lead steward of Local 290, specifically Shop 26, the Welders.

"I am a member of the U.S. Department of Defense," Gusoskey says. "We work on nuclear submarines and nuclear aircraft carriers."

Gusoskey found professional and financial stability through his union after suffering financial setbacks from a bad real estate investment and the 2008 market crash.

"My wife and I hit rough patches along the way," he recalls. "Then we found our current home in 2016."

Gusoskey and his wife decided to refinance their home this year with the Union Plus Mortgage Company. Though he went into the refi process with low expectations, Gusoskey now says he "can't speak highly enough" of the Union Plus Mortgage Company team.

"I'd worked to repair my credit," he notes. "I was skeptical because I've been burned so many times before."

He continues, "Union Plus went above and beyond and really takes you under their wing. There's no catch—it’s just a perk of being a union member."

Gusoskey also has high praise for the refinance process overall.

"Everything happened on or before the timeline they gave me. It was all really great."

The Union Plus Mortgage Program, with financing available through Union Plus Mortgage Company, is available for all eligible union members. The Union Plus Mortgage Company is union-owned and staffed by knowledgeable loan officers.

For qualifying members, there are special benefits for first-time homebuyers as well as:

• A $500 gift card after closing for purchasing or refinancing a home
• Special hardship mortgage assistance from Union Plus in the event of income loss due to disability, unemployment or strike/lockout.

"I go around telling everyone about Union Plus every day I can," Gusoskey says.

To learn more about Union Plus Mortgage Company, call 855 UNION 27 (855-864-6627) or visit unionplusmortgage.com.

Leslie Sanford has lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania her whole life and has been a Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) member for much of that time. She is a billing supervisor at a wastewater treatment facility where she's worked for the last 21 years.

Sanford bought her current home in 2008 and refinanced it a couple years ago. Both times, she turned to Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, which works with Union Plus to provide special benefits for union members.

"My Wells loan officer told me I would qualify for a gift card after closing," Sanford recalls of her 2017 refinance. "I remember I got a $300 gift card thanks to being a union member."

When union members purchase or refinance a home with Wells Fargo through the Union Plus Mortgage Program, they get $300 award for refinancing and $500 award for home purchases.¹ Additional benefits for veterans are available from Union Plus.

"It was excellent," Sanford says of her experience with the Union Plus Mortgage Program. "I had no issues whatsoever. They were very diligent with any questions that I had and they would get back to me within a timely manner. Things ran very smoothly."

Sanford entered last year's Union Plus Home for the Holidays Sweepstakes for Union Plus mortgage holders on a whim.

"You can’t win anything if you don't try," she says.

To her surprise, Sanford was chosen as one of five winners and got a check for $3,000.

Instead of using her prize money for holiday splurges, Sanford re-invested it in her home.

"I really appreciated the opportunity to be able to enter the sweepstakes, and of course, win," Sanford says. "I thought it was wonderful, especially since I'm a single mom. I was pouring all this money and time and effort into getting my daughter through college and now I can focus back on the things I need to do around the house."

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE
UNION PLUS MORTGAGE PROGRAM 

James White has been a member of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART) his entire career. He’s been the SMART Director of Organizing for the past 12 years and has worked for the International for two decades.

White has also been a loyal longtime customer of AT&T. Union Plus offers union members and retirees exclusive discounts and benefits with AT&T through the Union Plus Wireless Program.

"We’ve been with AT&T for a long time," White says. "We stayed with them when they became union and then the union discount was an added plus."

When White and other union members choose AT&T, they support more than 150,000 union members at the only nationwide unionized wireless carrier. With the Union Plus Wireless Program, union members and retirees receive 15% monthly service charge discounts on qualified wireless plans¹ and 20% discounts on select phone accessories.²

As Director of Organizing for SMART, White spends a lot of time on the road meeting with workers. He urges SMART members to take advantage of Union Plus benefits like the Union Plus Wireless Program.

White also encourages members to download the Union Plus Deals app on their smart phones. The app gives union members access to thousands of discounts on everything from pizza and movie tickets to car rentals and local attractions.

"You go out to eat once or twice a month, or you go to the movies, you use the Union Plus app and see what discounts they have," White says. "It makes it that much easier to save a few bucks."

To learn more about wireless discounts for union members, visit unionplus.org/att.

To explore Union Plus everyday discounts, visit unionplus.org/entertainment and follow the instructions to register for discounts with Abenity.

Tim Samsel shares a phone plan with his wife and two sons: that means a lot of electronics in his house. So when Samsel's union, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), emailed its members about AT&T wireless plan discounts through the Union Plus Wireless Program, Samsel and his wife were eager to check it out.

"We went into the local AT&T store to find out and see if we could get a better deal on our family phone plan," Samsel recalls. "Sure enough, it saved us money."

When the AT&T staff realized he was a NATCA member, they applied the Union Plus Wireless Program discount to the Samsels' existing AT&T phone plan.

When Samsel and other union members choose AT&T, they support more than 150,000 union members at the only nationwide unionized wireless carrier. With the Union Plus Wireless Program, union members and retirees receive a 15% monthly service charge discount on qualified wireless plans¹ and a 20% discount on select phone accessories.²

The Samsels also use the Union Plus Deals mobile phone app, which members can use to get discounts on everything from pizza and movie tickets to car rentals and local attractions.

"Our family is making a more conscious effort to see if there are better deals available for union families through the app," Samsel says.

Samsel recently retired after a long career as an air traffic controller — more than 28 years. He worked with a lot of younger men and women who are new to NATCA and he made it a point to tell them about the benefits offered through Union Plus.

"The younger workforce doesn’t realize the discounts are even there," Samsel says. "Myself and the other guys make sure they know to look for discounts through the union."

To learn more about wireless discounts for union members, visit unionplus.org/att.

To explore Union Plus everyday discounts, visit unionplus.org/entertainment and follow the instructions to register for discounts with Abenity and start saving.

Dave Guy wasn't thinking about buying a new car. His 2012 Chevrolet Tahoe had some miles on it but it still ran, and it was a good car for where he lives — 8,000 feet up in the mountains of Southwest Colorado.

Guy is a member of Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 472 based in California. He's a semi-retired licensed professional counselor and hypnotherapist, and he’s a pastoral counselor at his church.

When he received an email from Union Plus encouraging members to buy union-made cars, he started to re-assess his Tahoe.

Guy contacted the Union Plus Auto Buying Service to see if there were any dealerships nearby that offered the union discount. A friend who works at a nearby Ford dealership encouraged him to come in and sit in a new Ford Expedition. Guy's wife Jenny proclaimed it "a sweet ride," and well, today Guy is the proud owner of a new Ford Expedition.

The Union Plus Auto Buying Service, administered by TrueCar, a leading price comparison service, helps union members and their families find the right new or used car or truck at a great price and offers additional savings and benefits. With the Auto Buying Service, union members save an average of $3,402 off MSRP* on new cars. And, union members receive a $100 rebate directly from Union Plus if they purchase a union-made car through TrueCar.

"Union Plus could have just said, 'We are union, so buy union' or, 'Thanks for supporting unions.' But they said, 'For supporting unions, we'll give you a rebate of $100,'" Guy says.

Overall, buying a new car with the support of Union Plus "was a grand experience," Guy says.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE
UNION PLUS AUTO BUYING SERVICE