Julio Lopez said he sends money every month to his sister in Cuba, but as of Feb. 26, the company he’s always used, Western Union, stopped allowing all transfers to Cuba.
“Everybody’s talking, everybody’s complaining,” said the construction manager who’s lived in Canada for the past 13 years.
He said almost every Cuban-Canadian he knows has used Western Union and the money they’ve been able to send is an important support for their families in the communist country.
“It’s the faster way and the cheaper way,” Lopez said.
The company’s decision hits hard for people who send money to Cuba, since their options are already limited, as some companies don’t allow transfers to that country, due to a U.S. trade embargo that’s been in place since 1960, and ones that do, charge considerably more money than Western Union.
Due to the unique challenges of operating remittance services from countries outside of the United States to Cuba, Western Union is unable to operate money transfer services to Cuba from countries other than the United States, effective February 26, 2020. – Margaret D. Fogarty, Western Union Corporate Communications
Western Union’s exact reasons for changing its policy are unclear.
But in a statement to CBC Toronto, the company said the change was “due to the unique challenges of operating remittance services from countries outside of the United States to Cuba.”
Lopez said the money he sends is crucial for his family in Cuba.
“They’re struggling every day,” he said. “They need food, they need a lot of things that they don’t have.”
In the past, he’s used other money transfer services. Years ago, it was one called Transcard, which he says was slow and costly, charging $30 for each transfer, with the money arriving two weeks later.
He’s also used another service, which he says was somewhat faster, taking several days, but just as costly.
Canadian banks also allow transfers to Cuba. A customer service agent with one of them, RBC, confirmed that its clients can transfer up to $2,500 online, with the recipient’s full information, but there’s a fee of $13.50, plus another fee of $20 by the international transfer agent, JP Morgan. The person receiving the money then also has to pay a fee in Cuba.
For Lopez, a bank transfer would only make sense for someone sending a large amount of money, around $1,000, not the smaller amounts he and his employees, many of whom come from Cuba, normally send.
In terms of the options he’s had over the years, “Western Union is the best one ever,” he said, charging $7.90 per transaction.
“You pay very, very low. I call my sister and I say to her, ‘I’m going to send the money right now’… and in 15 minutes, she has the money.”
Cubans in Canada scrambling to find another option
Now, he’s not sure what he’ll do.
When told that transfers will still be allowed from the United States, Lopez recalled years ago, before Western Union was an option in Canada, sending money to a friend in the US, who then transferred the money to Lopez’s sister.
It’s unclear whether this change will be permanent.
“We understand the impact this will have on our customers and will follow up with them directly if we are able to reactivate transactions from outside the U.S. to Cuba in the future,” Western Union spokesperson Margaret D. Fogarty said in the company’s statement.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
