skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, April 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Tribal advocates keep up legal pressure for fair political maps; 12-member jury sworn in for Trump's historic criminal trial; the importance of healthcare decision planning; and a debt dilemma: poll shows how many people wrestle with college costs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Civil rights activists say a court ruling could end the right to protest in three southern states, a federal judge lets January 6th lawsuits proceed against former President Trump, and police arrest dozens at a Columbia University Gaza protest.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural Wyoming needs more vocational teachers to sustain its workforce pipeline, Ohio environmental advocates fear harm from a proposal to open 40-thousand forest acres to fracking and rural communities build bike trail systems to promote nature, boost the economy.

Mother's Day Protest Sends an Unwelcome Message to Western Union

play audio
Play

Thursday, May 10, 2007   


Western Union shareholders will get an unwelcome message today, as protestors outside their meeting are using International Mother's Day to bring attention to what they say is price gouging on the part of the country's largest money transfer company. Immigrants form the backbone of Western Union's money transfer business, but Francis Calpotura of the Transnational Institute for Grassroots Research and Action says they pay too much for the privilege.

“Western Union consistently charges the most in transaction fees, and gives the least exchange rate from all of it's competitors.”

A Western Union spokesperson says their rates are competitive in every market, adding that rates have recently gone down by 3 percent. Calpotura reports that their profit margin consistently hovers near 32 percent, so he believes there's plenty of room to treat their best customers better.

Western Union formed a charitable foundation five years ago, but if charity begins at home, Calpotura says the company has given out only 32 cents for every hundred dollars profit the company has earned.

“That's about ten times less than even what Wal-Mart gives. It's a paltry amount that Western Union gives out through its foundation, and it doesn't go to the communities and families that use their service at all.”

Donna Hernandez with the Applied Research Center says protesters led by a Mariachi band will deliver an International Mother's Day message to Western Union's CEO, Christina Gold.

“We're asking her to give a gift to mothers on Mother's Day -- lower the cost that they charge people to send money and also reinvest more money into the communities that fund their services.”




get more stories like this via email

more stories
The Bureau of Land Management's newly issued Public Lands Rule is designed to safeguard cultural resources such as New Mexico's Chaco Culture National Park. (Photo courtesy SallyPaez)

Environment

play sound

Balancing the needs of the many with those who have traditionally reaped benefits from public lands is behind a new rule issued Thursday by the Bureau…


Health and Wellness

play sound

Alzheimer's disease is the eighth-leading cause of death in Pennsylvania. A documentary on the topic debuts Saturday in Pittsburgh. "Remember Me: …

Social Issues

play sound

April is Financial Literacy Month, when the focus is on learning smart money habits but also how to protect yourself from fraud. One problem on the …


Outdoor recreation added $11.7 million to the Arizona economy in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Arizona conservation groups and sportsmen alike say they're pleased the Bureau of Land Management will now recognize conservation as an integral part …

play sound

Across the U.S., most political boundaries tied to the 2020 Census have been in place for a while, but a national project on map fairness for …

The 2023 Annie E. Casey Foundation Data Book ranked Arkansas 37th in the nation for education, and said 56% of young children were not in preschool programs to help get them ready for school. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

The need for child care and early learning is critical, especially in rural Arkansas. One nonprofit is working to fill those gaps by giving providers …

Environment

play sound

An annual march for farmworkers' rights is being held Sunday in northwest Washington. This year, marchers are focusing on the conditions for local …

Social Issues

play sound

A new Gallup and Lumina Foundation poll unveils a concerning reality: Hoosiers may lack clarity about the true cost of higher education. The survey …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021