Labor In The News: Amalgamated Bank Sets Sights on DC

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Amalgamated Bank – “labor’s bank” – got a nice write-up in The Washington Post recently (Bank owned by a union, for unions, sets its sights on Washington 8/4). Founded in New York in 1923, Amalgamated “has begun beefing up its Washington presence,” reported Abha Bhattarai. “Over time, national organizations have taken on a greater importance,” senior vice president Keith Mestrich told the Post. “Many of them have ended up here in Washington because they’re increasingly trying to influence Congress and national policy.” Washington area deposits have risen 70 percent to about $150 million over the last year, as “We were able to carve out a space as a bank for progressive politics,” Mestrich said. photo by Jeffrey MacMillan/The Washington Post