Webster Announces Investment in Employees and Communities

WATERBURY, Conn., Jan, 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE: WBS), the holding company for Webster Bank, N.A. and its HSA Bank division, today announced an acceleration of investment in its employees and the communities it serves following the passage of new federal tax reform legislation.

These investments include:

Payment of a one-time $1,000 cash bonus in the first quarter of 2018 to full-time employees who are below the vice president level. This payment will benefit approximately 70 percent of all Webster full-time employees;
Increasing Webster's minimum wage to $15 per hour by the end of 2018;
Beginning in 2018, augmenting Webster's annual philanthropic and community investment by $1 million; and,
Enhancing Webster's investment in strategic employee development initiatives and early career programs, creating new job opportunities in our markets.

"Investing in our employees and our communities has been an integral part of Webster's 82-year history as a values-guided, community-minded organization," said John Ciulla, president and chief executive officer. "These investments demonstrate our commitment to our employees and to the markets that we serve."

Webster continues to assess the financial impact of the new federal tax reform legislation and intends to disclose the impact on or before its earnings release for the fourth quarter of 2017.

About Webster
Webster Financial Corporation is the holding company for Webster Bank, National Association. With $26.4 billion in assets, Webster provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, financial planning, trust, and investment services through 167 banking centers and 338 ATMs. Webster also provides mobile and Internet banking. Webster Bank owns the asset-based lending firm Webster Business Credit Corporation; the equipment finance firm Webster Capital Finance Corporation; and HSA Bank, a division of Webster Bank, which provides health savings account trustee and administrative services. Webster Bank is a member of the FDIC and an equal housing lender. For more information about Webster, including past press releases and the latest annual report, visit the Webster website at www.websterbank.com.