On Ten Year Anniversary of Dodd-Frank, Committee for Better Banks Demands Stronger Protections for Struggling Consumers and Essential Bankers

Committee for Better Banks

For Immediate Release: July 21, 2020

Media Contact: Zoe PiSierra, [email protected]

On Ten Year Anniversary of Dodd-Frank, Committee for Better Banks Demands Stronger Protections for Struggling Consumers and Essential Bankers

CBB applauds 2010 Wall Street regulations “critical” to protecting American consumers, calls for Bank Workers Bill of Rights to ensure heightened support for working people

Washington, D.C. - Today, on the ten year anniversary of the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reforms, the Committee for Better Banks -- the country’s first independent coalition of frontline bank workers, born out of the 2008 financial crisis -- released the following statement from its organizing leads, Nick Weiner and Erin Mahoney:

“To all the naysayers who sought to roll back the Dodd-Frank Act, thank goodness they were largely unsuccessful. During this pandemic, it’s the banks that have been called on to support struggling Americans -- a major improvement from 2008 where taxpayers were forced to shell-out for the banks. The capitalization requirements we see today have no doubt helped big banks to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and positioned them to support our economic recovery. 

“After the 2008 crisis, the Dodd-Frank Act brought sanity to our financial system and has been critical to making our economy safer and more accessible for working people; and institutions like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have given bank workers and customers newfound tools to hold financial institutions accountable. However, we must continue to build on the foundation of Dodd-Frank, and defend it against the continued onslaught of rollbacks and attacks, to bring about bold change that puts power into the hands of frontline bank workers and consumers.

“We need stronger and clearer protections that go beyond the Federal Reserve’s ‘stress test’ requirements -- ones that have a broader view of banks’ role in our country as employers. We must hold banks to a higher standard, and enact a Bank Worker Bill of Rights, to ensure that frontline bankers, tellers, and call-center employees have a voice on the job to regulate the unwieldy industry from below and ensure that real relief is delivered to the millions of Americans who depend on it.”

The Committee for Better Banks Calls for Bank Worker Bill of Rights 

The Committee for Better Banks is calling for a Bank Workers’ Bill of Rights to support the financial security of bank workers, their families, and banking consumers who deserve strong advocates for their savings both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week, the Committee for Better Banks escalated these calls with the launch of the Better Banks Accountability Project designed to hold the country's largest banks accountable to their frontline workers and consumers nationwide during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The Better Banks Accountability Project's COVID-19 scorecard ranks the country's largest banks on their Main Street lending policies, employee and consumer protections, and charitable contributions amid the pandemic. 

The twelve banks analyzed in the scorecard have combined total assets of $8.5 trillion and made more than $155 billion in profits last year, presenting them an unmatched opportunity to safeguard the financial health of consumers nationwide. Yet, not one of the twelve banks received an A in CBB’s rankings, highlighting a dangerous lack of consistencies when it comes to worker and consumer protections across the US banking industry and a need for a Bank Workers’ Bill of Rights.

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About the Committee for Better Banks:

The Committee for Better Banks, the only independent voice for frontline bank employees, is comprised of bank workers, community and consumer advocacy groups, and labor organizations, coming together to improve conditions in the banking industry. Committee for Better Banks members include current and former employees of banks and credit unions across the country, including Wells Fargo, Santander, Bank of the West, and Bank of America.