I'm interested in the Capital One Union Plus credit card. It says that one way to get it is to be a member of Working America. So I went to their site, clicked "Membership," entered my email where it said "join," and got a confirmation email. So am I eligible for this card now?
Feels too easy.
More info:
- Thanks to @wacdenney for this information that seems to suggest that the answer is "yes."
- Some report-backs from my interactions with customer service here and here. Make of that what you will.
Planning to apply for it in July or early August. I'll let you know if I get it, and then if I end up with hospital bills I'll let you know how the grant process goes! (Let's hope #1 happens and #2 doesn't.)
I think joining gets you added to at least eleventy email lists, so brace yourself...
Never heard of this card. Best wishes with it.
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(+151)Thanks @SweetCreditObsession ! The reason I'm interested is the hardship grants, specifically the hospital grant. Pretty interesting benefit.
I'm not 100% sure that all cardholders are eligible for those benefits, I'm trying to find out from customer service.
@TyrannicalDuncery, that IS a unique benefit. Please keep us posted on the outcome of your inquiry to customer service. Thank you 😊
@SweetCreditObsession Okay, so I called customer service and they told me the following:
- They emphasized that you aren't guaranteed to be approved for the hardship grant, because your expenses have to be eligible, there's a review process, etc. Basically "don't get mad at us because you were deemed ineligible for any specific grant." Makes sense.
- They said that Working America basically counts as a union for the purposes of the credit card.
- In particular, they said that you will not lose eligibility for hardship grants just because you are in Working America instead of a union. (Yay! That's what I really wanted to know.)
- I asked whether my credit card application would be less likely to be approved because I'm in Working America instead of a union. They weren't sure.
- I asked whether I need to be a donating member of Working America to be eligible for the card. They weren't sure.
- I asked whether I would be eligible for the card if I or a family member were in a union other than the ones listed in their dropdown menu. They said no.
- I asked whether I would still be eligible for hardship grants if I or my family member later left the union that made me eligible. They said yes.
- They said that they were a pretty experienced customer service rep, they had heard of Working America, but I was the first member they had ever knowingly talked to.
@TyrannicalDuncery wrote:@SweetCreditObsession Okay, so I called customer service and they told me the following:
- They emphasized that you aren't guaranteed to be approved for the hardship grant, because your expenses have to be eligible, there's a review process, etc. Basically "don't get mad at us because you were deemed ineligible for any specific grant." Makes sense.
- They said that Working America basically counts as a union for the purposes of the credit card.
- In particular, they said that you will not lose eligibility for hardship grants just because you are in Working America instead of a union. (Yay! That's what I really wanted to know.)
- I asked whether my credit card application would be less likely to be approved because I'm in Working America instead of a union. They weren't sure.
- I asked whether I need to be a donating member of Working America to be eligible for the card. They weren't sure.
- I asked whether I would be eligible for the card if I or a family member were in a union other than the ones listed in their dropdown menu. They said no.
- I asked whether I would still be eligible for hardship grants if I or my family member later left the union that made me eligible. They said yes.
@TyrannicalDuncery, thanks for the detective work! You asked EXCELLENT questions. This sound fascinating. I'm curious to see if we'll get more interest in this card now that you've mentioned it.
Thanks again for doing the research and following up! 
Thanks for the kind words 
. Yeah it's about the best I could have hoped for.
I guess the benefit is pretty situational, but I have pretty low spend and I don't have the most common sense or situational awareness. So the hospital thing seems like a good deal to me .
Okay, two pieces of information.
1. On the question of whether I'm really in Working America just by signing up for their email list (rather than donating or doing something else): It's still not a guarantee, but there is a place on the Working America site where you can check whether you qualify for a discount from AT&T. I entered my email to check my eligibility and it said yes, you have been in Working America for at least x days so you qualify for our discount.
2. On the question of whether I can get the grant if I'm just in Working America and not a union: I called that one customer service rep a while ago. Recently I also emailed grants at union privilege dot org with the following question and response:
Me:
I am a member of Working America, but not a member of any union. If I am given a Union Plus credit card and remain in good standing for at least three months, would I be eligible for hardship grants associated with job losses and hospital expenses? If not, what are the other requirements?
Them:
Yes, all Union Plus cardholders are eligible for our hardship assistance programs. The reference to “eligible cardholders” means that you must have had the account open and in good standing for at least three months before the hardship occurs.
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So I'm feeling pretty good about my chances for getting the hospital grant if I should be injured. I wouldn't bet my health on it, but I can afford to be wrong.
Just based on my own speculation, the two big question marks would be the following; a) Are the customer service people wrong about the policy? b) Does not being in a union make it HARDER (just not impossible) to get the hardship grants? For a) I feel better that someone from the actual grants email address told me that I would be okay.
