Investment Group Calls for Mackey to Leave

NEW YORK — An investment group affiliated with a union federation last week called for Whole Foods Market to replace the embattled John Mackey as its chairman. CtW Investment Group here, an investment fund that manages pension funds for the collection of unions called Change to Win, wrote a letter to Whole Foods’ board of directors saying that Mackey’s pseudonymous postings on online stock message boards have damaged his reputation and possibly hindered the pending merger with Wild Oats. “We urge the board to immediately name an independent board chair who can quickly establish credibility with regulatory authorities and shareholders,” the CtW letter stated. The letter went on to detail Mackey’s postings in chronological relation to the stock performance of both companies, saying that the postings “raise a number of legal and ethical issues” and in some cases may indicate violations of Whole Foods’ own Code of Conduct and Ethics.

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