Submitted photo Josh Toot of Canfield, senior vice president of commercial banking at Home Savings Bank, works from home.

With changes brought on by COVID-19, the joke of “banker’s hours” has become a reality for many banks tasked with processing loans for small businesses desperate to stay afloat through the pandemic.

“It’s definitely been unsettling here for the last month,” said Jim Gasior, president and CEO of Cortland Bank.

Gasior said since the bank decided to close lobbies about two weeks ago, tellers have been coming in three days a week on a rotating basis to work drive-thru windows. Entranceways and drive-thrus at the bank’s 14 locations are sanitized daily.

Most lenders, business bankers and credit underwriting staff — approximately one fourth of Cortland Bank employees — are working from home. On top of those changes, bankers are scrambling to keep up with a slew of small business loan applications prompted by funds made available through the Congressional Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

SMALL BUSINESS AID

The $394 billion federal small business lending program through the Small Business Association had a rocky start, with SBA technology problems and unanswered questions slowing the process.

Gasior said when the program opened, Cortland Bank initially couldn’t access the system. The SBA set expectations that approved loans would be funded in five days — a difficult task — but the deadline was relaxed to 10 days.

As of Friday, Cortland Bank had processed 235 loan applications with $47 million approved and about a third of that funded. In order to process the loans, Cortland Bank bankers split into two shifts — a daytime shift and an evening shift that worked until 2 or 3 a.m.

“We had to pull individuals who are coming from other areas of the bank in order to get those loans funded,” Gasior said. He said some employees have been managing their own areas while also taking on additional work to help process SBA applications or answer calls.

“I think in a lot of conversations, the banks really haven’t been given their due,” Gasior said.

He said bankers and background employees are working long hours to make sure small businesses survive the pandemic. “It’s about how many jobs we’ll be able to save.”

The SBA loans, based on a company’s payroll costs, offer owners forgiveness if they retain workers or rehire those who have been laid off. Seventy-five percent of funds must be used for payroll purposes.

“It’s important that we get these funded to keep individuals in our community,” Gasior said.

PROGRAM TAPPED OUT

The program reached its lending limit Thursday after approving nearly 1.7 million loans — but thousands of small business owners whose loans have not yet been processed are stuck in limbo as they await a potential $250 billion second round of the program.

The new funding has been stalled by lawmakers haggling over whether to extend the program as it stands now, or add provisions. Some, however, said Sunday an agreement to extend the program may come as early as today.

Gary Small, president of First Federal Bank, said the bank is still accepting SBA loan applications in anticipation of the second round of funding, but bankers are telling customers there may be a wait before their applications are processed.

“It’s needed, because the demand is still out there,” Small said of the additional funding.

MERGER AMID PANDEMIC

First Federal Bank is dealing with COVID-19 pressures while also working through a large merger with Home Savings Bank, a Valley staple for about 150 years.

“For us, we’re still in the middle of our integrations between our two banks, and that is a very large program,” Small said. “Everything with the pandemic and the small business program –those have been other things that have been added to our plate.”

Small said because of the pandemic, the 73-branch bank is working on a “revised operating model,” with 650 employees who are capable of working remotely. On any given day, at least 500 of those people are staying home, with others periodically in offices to carry out necessary work.

There are also more than 400 people still staffing branch drive-thrus and taking appointments for business that must be done in the office.

The bank pulled “dedicated, specific teams” to get the SBA program running and set up protocols for customers.

The organization has had over 2,000 applications for the SBA loans — with about 40 percent satisfied by the initial funding, according to Small, who pinned the average loan request at about $300,000. Small said approximately 80 percent of the SBA loan applications have been from small businesses with comparatively low payrolls, who seek $250,000 or less. Other requests have been “quite sizeable” Small said.

He said the program has been a “moving target.”

“We had no idea what it would really look like,” Small said. “I assure you there were many, many late nights and very early mornings for two-and-a-half weeks.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

avugrincic@tribtoday.com