NEW YORK—Immigrants staged a protest Wednesday against a Western Union office in midtown Manhattan, charging that the money transfer company charges too much in fees.
“Western Union and agencies like them prey on low-income communities of color here and overseas,” said protester Janis Rosheuvel, director of Families for Freedom, an immigrant advocacy group.
In the past, immigrants rights groups have criticized Western Union for charging what they claim are excessively high fees.
Englewood, Colo.-based Western Union is the largest money transfer service in the world, employing about 6,000 people in more than 200 countries and territories.
The company performed almost 150 million money transfers in 2006 alone.
“We’re proud to provide fast, reliable and trusted service at competitive prices,” said Western Union Use spokesman Dan Diaz.
He cited the company’s creation of Our World, Our Family, a program that will provide about $50 million over five years for global disaster assistance, scholarships and other endeavors.
