Frederick Healey, prominent CEO of Fitchburg-based Workers Credit Union, left his job abruptly on Dec. 17. As of today, the credit union is staying mum on the cause.

"We would love to [answer questions], but at this point it’s ‘no comment,’" said Douglas J. Petersen, who is CFO and was named interim CEO upon Healey’s departure. Petersen told Banker & Tradesman that the Fitchburg-based credit union was beginning its search for a replacement, and that the credit union may be able to discuss it further after the search had ended. He added that Workers was a strong institution that had solid earnings thus far in 2010.

Healey had served as CEO of Workers for 15 years, during which time he became a well-known fixture of civic life. News reports from central Massachusetts quote local officials’ surprise at his sudden exit.

Workers has shown strong asset growth over the past year, going from $715.4 million in the third quarter 2009 to $782 million at the end of the third quarter 2010, according to the latest data from the National Credit Union Administration. Its ratio of net worth to total assets – an indicator of financial health – stood at 12.19 percent as of the third quarter, outpacing the industry-wide peer average of 9.78 percent.