Bank of America: plenty of profit

You work three nights a week at a local restaurant because that's all your demanding schedule as a full-time college student will allow

By living paycheck-to-paycheck, you're able to afford the necessary gas, food and other miscellaneous living costs that are needed to get by, but rarely much more.

Sound familiar?

That's because this describes the week-to-week reality of nearly every college student in the United States that doesn't rely on mommy and daddy's paychecks to pay the tuition bill.

We all know money isn't easy to come by, especially now in this economy. You work hard to earn each penny you do have.

So when a big-time corporation says they're going to take those hard-earned dollars away from you in order to provide a service that had otherwise always been free of charge, you'll be left with empty pockets, wondering how they could do such a thing.

When the calendar year turns to 2012 this January, Bank of America will do just that by implementing a new policy that students across the country are largely still unaware of. In addition to many other fees the bank already has in place, America's most popular bank is set to issue a $5 monthly charge to all customers that use their debit card to complete a transaction.

It's a policy that Brian Moynihan, chief executive of Bank of America, justified by going as far as saying the bank "has a right to make a profit."

So at the beginning of the New Year, for each purchase you make with your debit card, Bank of America will extend their grubby hands into your account and steal five dollars of the money you've worked so hard for just so they can "make a profit."

I don't know about you, but I'm broke. The last thing I need is for some wealthy banker to finance his next trip to Tahiti by way of my hard-earned money. It's bad enough the same thing happens with our taxes.

So why is this happening?

There really is no definitive answer.

Bank of America has been thought to be one of the nation's most profitable banks for a while now. With by far the most ATMs nationwide and convenient, easy-to-use mobile and web banking systems, it has been an attractive banking option for many people, including myself, over the years.

But this policy comes not long after the company received $45 billion in federal bailout money.

So how could a bank who just received $45 billion be that desperate to earn a profit? It comes down to corporate greed.

If you look at the numbers, Bank of America is far from financially troubled. Moynihan earned nearly $10 million last year.

That's about $9,999,999 more than you and I have.

Bank of America is not the only bank to implement additional charges in an effort to sustain a profit, though, either.

In fact, Citibank recently decided to charge each accountholder $10 per month if they possess a checking account of under $1,500, which, by the way, is almost every college student known to man.

In addition, Wells Fargo has begun issuing a $3 debit card fee to its customers much like the one Bank of America will be using.

In short, it's downright disgusting what these banks are getting away with and someone needs to put a stop to it.

So who better to put a stop to this greediness than the people this atrocious policy affects the most: The college student?

How, you ask?

This year, Nov. 5 is "National Bank Transfer Day". On this day, thousands of disgruntled customers just like you and I will close their corporate bank account and move their money to smaller community banks or credit unions – financial institutions that are just as economically sustainable as the big boys.

Here in Western New York, we're lucky enough to be home to one of the most successful community banks in the country, First Niagara Bank.

They have all the amenities that the bigger banks have – free checking, overdraft protection, online banking and bill pay -- with YouFirst checking (See that? They put YOU, first). Plus, they have the all-important FREE debit card; the way it's supposed to be.

The only flaw is they currently do not have a mobile banking system in place, so we'll just have to do without the convenience of paying bills that we just remembered on our way to school that were due today via cell phone. But alas, it's a small price to pay, I guess.

I don't know about you, but I'd rather not stick around to find out how much more of my money the corporate banks are going to steal from me.

What I do know, though, is come Nov. 5, I will no longer trust my money to Bank of America. I advise you to make the switch, too.

Brandon Schlager can be reached by email at schlager.record@live.com.