Dec 19, 2006

Predatory Lenders / Should I quit my job?

I work for a cash advance/check cashing company and I don't like it. I like the people I work for, but the company is a different story. We're very careful with our interest and as far as I can tell, we don't violate any usury laws, which is one of the biggest problems with advance payday loan companies, but while what we're doing isn't illegal, it's not a good thing, either. We don't provide a service to society.

John Edwards (who I've loved for a long time...it's the young idealistic ones that get me) on predatory lenders: http://blog.oneamericacommittee.com/story/2006/10/16/145158/48

We aren't maliciously predatory, but we're still giving people loans that really don't pay off for them in the long run (or at least aren't worth it for 98% of our customers).

Also the check cashing side of things: it's like asking for forgeries. I've dealt with plenty of them. It shouldn't be legal, it's too easy of a system to abuse.

Here's the question: if I don't support a company's existance, is it moral to work for them because I like the hours and money?

After working with several hundred people in dire financial situations, I can definitely agree with the John Edwards on the bankruptcy thing. "It was easy for Congress to characterize bankrupt families as 'deadbeats' and ignore the reality that more than 90 percent of all bankruptcies are due to medical emergencies, job loss, divorce or a death in the family." There are a lot of good people that turn to our company to deal with some medical emergency, etc., and end up having to declare bankruptcy because they can't ever pay us and other people they owe money to. It's horrible, but it's good when they can declare bankruptcy and get that fresh start because they're in such a deep pit.

My part of the job doesn't feel amoral because I'm just working in collections. They've already agreed to pay and then they haven't, so I'm making sure the justice is met. But that doesn't mean I don't hate that people get the loans in the first place.

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