The SEIU Credit Scam

Wow. Evidently things must be going okey-dokey for the Purple Plague, because they've sent out a mass E-mail to everyone on their list - even those who have been previously placed on a do-not-bug list (like myself), advertising their Extra Special Rewards Sooper Kewl SEIU card.

So this is a card that was "created for you as a consumer-friendly program that eliminates costly fees and helps save you money - all while offering a fantastic rewards program." I guess it's only appropriate that we check some of the details, yes?

Well, you do get 1% cash back, but to get that, you have to go through the following:



APR 15% to 20%? Penalty rate 28%? Balance transfer APR 6% for only six months? Credit terms like that are certainly going to be saving some people some money - primarily the people at Purple Plague HQ.

So let's take a look at who is actually issuing the card - an outfit called "Partners First" - they basically issue "affinity" cards to any group that can pull together enough customers, but Partners First also has a cash-back card of its own. Let's check the non-SEIU Partners First card's details...



So, Partners First with their "own" card gives you more cash back (0.25%), has an APR that is anywhere from 50% to 67% that of the SEIU card, and charges nothing for a balance transfer for the first six months (instead of SEIU's six-month 6% rate).

That's one hell of a lot of money to pay for the "privilege" of having the SEIU logo on the card.

Perhaps this logo would be more appropriate for the SEIU card: