Union first at US banking giant

In an unheard-of move in the United States financial sector, employees at the JPMorgan Chase multinational services firm — and America’s biggest bank — have been seeking advice from the Communication Workers of America (CWA) on how to form a union.

The move follows the financial giant’s decree of a five-day return to work for all employees and was announced in January ahead of a March start date.

The bank’s injunction represents a reversal of remote working practices put in place during the Covid pandemic.

Employees representing groups from different areas of the bank all over the US have contacted the union, according to Nick Weiner, an organiser with the CWA.

“They wanted information on how to unionise. We gave them directions and tasks for next steps,” he said.

The CWA represents workers in a range of industries including technology and customer services.

In 2023, workers at a New Mexico branch of Wells Fargo, one of the top five US banks, voted to join the CWA, a first in the banking industry.

Since then, more than 20 Wells Fargo branches have unionised with the CWA.

In January, at the start of his presidency, Donald Trump signed an executive order demanding all federal government workers return to working in person on a full-time basis.