Bergen Hospital Repaying Employees' Student Loans

TEANECK, NJ — A Bergen County hospital is giving its employees a rare benefit: It is helping them pay off their student loans.

Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck launched its Student Loan Repayment Assistance Program Monday. Full- and part-time employees eligible for benefits could have up to $5,000 of their higher education loans paid off.

How much money an employee qualifies for depends on how many years someone has worked for Holy Name. Contributions are company-funded.

"Instead of just offering the traditional loan reimbursement program to employees who want to pursue continuing education, we also wanted to give back to employees who are currently using their degree to care for our community every day," said Manny Gonzalez, vice president of Human Resources at Holy Name. "It’s great to be able to help lift that financial burden."

According to Holy Name, only 4 percent of United States employers offer student loan repayment assistance to employees.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com