I thought this might be interesting.

For the normal everyday hardworking blue collar worker. Convience me I need to take my paycheck to the bank and deposit it on Friday.

Banks offer financial services for a fee. It's that simple. Some people appreciate or need those services, some don't. Convincing you to open a bank account would be like trying to convince me to join the video of the month club - I don't feel I need it and I would reap very little (if any) benifit so why pay the fees? If you are able to manage your finances without a bank account then there's no compelling reasons to pay the fees.

If a bank has a service you want (or need) then shop around, find the one with the best value for the services you will use and pay the fee - just like you would for any other service you buy.

How do you pay your bills? Do you drive to each place (electric, water, gas, etc) and pay them cash? What about credit cards or car loans that may be held by out of town banks. How do you pay those? Western Union? Money orders?

The amount of time and effort you spend going from one location to another in itself would be enough incentive for me to open an account. And how are you saving for the future? Money in the matress? Most blue collar jobs do not have 401(k) or retirement plans, are you just planning on social security?

How often do you see on TV that someone's apartment or home has burned to the ground? How many of these people had their money in their mattress or in a jar in the kitchen cabinet? It's gone now. If it was in the bank, it would still be there. If the bank has a fire, the bank is insured by the FDIC. So, your money is always safe.

The money you pay for money orders to pay your bills would pay the fees required to pay monthly charges for a checking account. You just have to be smart enough to balance your checkbook and keep it balanced every day. You don't have to keep copies of those money orders anymore because the bank keeps copies of your checks.

My bank offers online banking. So, for the companies that do not offer auto debit (lawn care, property taxes, car insurance, etc), I can pay those bills online and not have to bother writing a check or even paying postage. The bank doesn't charge me for this service. When I go online, the system gives me a guaranteed delivery date. If I have a question about anything, I can email them from within their online system and they respond within 24 hours or sooner. I can even look at my bank statement online any time I want.

It's also easier to save a little money when you have a bank account. Open a savings account and when you cash your check, you can deposit as much or as little as you want into a savings account. Before you know it, that little savings account has grown and you begin to get a good feeling in your stomach because your nest egg is building. And, pretty soon you realize you don't have to live from pay check to pay check. You begin to get a sense of security.

This is not an exclusive list, but here are some reasons:


(1)

Bank covers your deposited paycheck with insurance.

Cash in your wallet is not protected by any insurance.


(2)

Bank allows you to mail checks to anyone you owe money to.

Most businesses will not accept cash in the mail.


(3)

If there is fraud on your account by no fault of yours and you report it timely, you will likely not be out any money.

If someone defrauds or steals your cash, you are just out whatever they got from you. Even if you catch and prosecute them, it is unlikely you will ever see your money again.


(4)

Money in your pocket does not earn any interest.

Money in the bank can earn low interest, but it is better than nothing.



(5)

If you do not have an account, you will likely have to pay to get your check cashed.

If you have an account, but do not want your paycheck deposited there, you can easily find an account where you can cash it for free. Also, you can likely find an account where there are no monthly fees so long as your activity level is low or online.

A lot of banks offer free checking with auto-deposit of your payroll check. That and on-line bill paying and you get the best of all worlds!

"A Bank offers nothing that anyone HAS to have." That was a statement that was droned into us when I first got into banking a number of years ago.

There were still a big population of folks that had gone through the crash when banks failed and people lost all they had. Even the next generation was suspicious as a result of what happened to their parents.

So a good percentage of the population did not believe in banks, despite the governments reform of the industry. FDIC insurance was $10,000 in those days, and at the end of each quarter, we would see many people come in to the bank to have interest posted in their passbook. Most had a handful of passbooks for a number of institutions, as they never allowed an account to exceed the insurance coverage. This generation did not use, nor would they ask for many of the services an institution provided. Banks concentrated on indoctrinating a newer generation into using bank services.

I say this to remind folks that it really wasn't that long ago when it was very true that a person did not need to have a bank account.

We didn't have half the products offered today. In the 60's and 70's effort to attract customers was focused on providing customer service from knowledgeable, polite, well trained, and professional looking, staff of people. You had to know your craft in order to advance. ALL WE HAD TO SELL WAS CONVENIENCE, AND CUSTOMER SERVICE, AS NO ONE ACTUALLY NEEDED TO HAVE A BANK ACCOUNT.

That has changed a lot in the perception these days, as institutions have made the convenience of writing checks almost a necessity. Merchants certainly have benefited from this convenience. The economy has benefited from the convenience.

Does the old adage apply today? Some but only slightly as we have evolved into an entirely different economy than our grandparents knew. Much is taken for granted by the general population and unfortunately by a great many people that work in the banking industry today.

There is currently a whole community of unbanked people that the industry is trying to get into the system. These people have survived all their lives without a banking affiliation. The industry could have cared less about these people until the potential income started to sink in. But, this population is functioning well without bank accounts.

While I don't yearn for the old days, an occasional remembrance by the industry that all they really have to sell is convenience, is still a good idea.

So, my answer to the question of do blue collar workers need bank accounts, is NO. Its just a matter of deciding on the worth of the convenience.

Can I add my two cents worth?

Banks aren't the only option. You can also join a Credit Union. It is a wonderful alternative if you are scared of big banks!

Or a small community bank. I can think of two Credit Unions that are bigger than my bank in my area.

My advice to people: shop around. You might just be surprised that the little bank on the corner can provide the same products as the large big banks but still provide you with a small community atmosphere.

I have worked at big and small banks. I gave wonderful service at both, and clients weren't "Scared" of me. I must admit it gets my goat to see any financial institution try to pump themselves up because "they're not as scarry as the big banks". Give me a break, some community banks are staffed with jerks Some are not. Same for CU's and big banks. Do your business with some CU's and you're giving your money to a financial institution that isn't contributing to your community like the neighborhood bank is. Not all, but some. Same for banks.

Why should you use a bank? Personal choice. Let me supply two client reasons I can think of quickly.

One, a 90 year old man who came to my desk to open his first checking account. He sat a bag on my desk full of cash, over $100,000 in the thing. Why was he opening an account now when 90 years of no bank had worked previously? Because someone knew he kept cash in grocery bags and beat the hell out of him on the way back from the grocery store.

Second, A business who didn't want to bother to deal with payroll issues, who also employed many undocumented workers. He paid in cash. One payday they found his body next to his car, payroll gone, knife in his chest. When people know you carry cash, you take a risk!

If you're going to live your life on a cash basis, make sure no one, wife, girlfriend, child, friend, no one! knows about it. People who carry large amounts of cash on them are at risk from people who aren't so nice. Normally the crimes perpetuated against these folks are not committed by strangers.

There are a million more reasons, some of which have been mentioned, but safety is one of them. If you want to cash your check and carry a wad of cash in your wallet, go ahead, but know you're taking a risk.