The UAW, the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, and several Detroit area churches and ministers are cutting up their Chase credit cards and withdrawing their funds from Chase banks. Supposedly, the effort is aimed at Chase’s refusal to issue a moratorium on Detroit-area foreclosures, and because the bank has ties to R.J. Reynolds. Reynolds is accused by the group of exploiting tobacco workers in North Carolina. The ministers are asking area churches and their members to remove their funds from the New York-based bank. Including the UAW strike fund, hundreds of millions of dollars are reportedly involved. Since financial institutions are under increasing union organizing pressure, ulterior motives should be considered for the squeeze play.
