PROVIDENCE — Providence has become the first municipality in the nation to endorse a boycott of money transfer giant Western Union.

Activist groups nationwide have been organizing small protests against the company for the past month, charging that Western Union’s fees are too high, and that the company does not give back enough to the people and countries it serves.

City Council members estimate that Western Union handles 55 percent of money transfers to and from Providence, and last night, the 15-member City Council unanimously approved a resolution supporting the campaign.

“Cities around the country are looking towards the example Providence is setting tonight,” said Francis Calpotura, the founder and executive director of Transnational Institute for Grassroots Research and Action, the Oakland, Calif.-based group that is leading the protests against Western Union.

“They have a responsibility. They are making money from our neighborhood. They should bring some of that money back… I’ll be expecting other cities and towns across America to follow,” said Councilman Miguel Luna, who sponsored the bill.

The resolution does not bind the city to any specific action against Western Union; it simply signals support for the national effort and urges the company to “become a genuine partner of sustainable development of the communities they serve.”

According to World Bank figures from 2005, people from around the world sent $205 billion abroad. Wire companies, Western Union chief among them, earned $30 billion from the exchange.

Western Union offers same-day transfer service that arrives almost instantly for $14.99 per $1,000 and a next-day service for $9.99 per $1,000. The company has 312,000 locations in more than 200 countries.

TIGRA’s organizers say that Western Union gives less money to charity per dollar of profit than companies like Wal-Mart. And considering how deeply entrenched Western Union is in the developing world, they want the company to shoulder more responsibility.

“We want Western Union, as the leader in the industry, to provide the leadership,” Calpotura said.

Western Union Spokesman Daniel Diaz said that the 150-year-old Colorado-based company, which went public last year, conducts extensive philanthropy and disaster-relief programs. He said that the Western Union Foundation has disbursed $40 million to nonprofit organizations worldwide since 2001. It has given out another $900,000 in scholarships worldwide, donated $1.5 million to victims of Hurricane Katrina, provided $500,000 for cochlear implants for deaf children in Mexico, and donated $100,000 to buy fishing boats for Thai fishermen whose boats were destroyed during the 2005 tsunami.

Diaz said that the company has met with TIGRA representatives twice, but have made little headway.

“The group does not want to understand what our record is,” Diaz said.

“A lot of its got to do with the fact that the group does not understand the dynamics of the industry,” Diaz said.

He said that while some of the concerns the group have are endemic to the money-transfer industry, Western Union is being singled out because it is the biggest and the most famous.

“We have an established brand. We have a global presence,” he said. “We are a target because of our brand.”

Councilman Luna acknowledged that Western Union is the focus because of its market position and history. But he said that’s the way to get the entire industry to change — focus on the leader.

“They are the largest, that’s why we’re focusing on them,” he said. “But if the big one is willing to negotiate, it does send a message, not only to Western Union but to companies like them.”

Diaz said that Western Union has not had a chance to review the Providence resolution yet. But he said that the company is happy to come here and give its side of the story to the Providence City Council.

dbarbari@projo.com