AFL-CIO Demands 'Unionmade' Stop Its Fakery

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AFL-CIO

Attention "Unionmade": We're not flattered by imitation.

What happens when a company that acknowledges its clothing is not union-made names itself "Unionmade" anyway? Count on union members proud of their reputation for quality work to say, "Give it up." In a letter Thursday, the AFL-CIO demanded that the apparel company Unionmade—which also has a logo suspiciously like the historic AFL-CIO “handshake” logo—stop its trademark infringement and unfair competition.

The federation told the company to immediately stop using the logo (including not selling items showing it and removing the sign from stores and online sites) and change the store name so it “does not deceive the public into thinking that they are purchasing items that are actually made by union workers….”

Hamilton Nolan at Gawker.com exposed Unionmade’s deceptive presentation of its products. When pushed, Nolan wrote, Unionmade admitted “some of the brands we carry are union made, many are not.”

FULL story at link.

Read more: http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Corporate-Greed/AFL-CIO-Demands-Unionmade-Stop-Its-Fakery

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Read the full letter here: http://www.aflcio.org/content/download/58731/831521/version/1/file/Unionmade+letter.pdf

[Berlum]

1. Bain Capital (R) own this Ripoff, Inc.?

Would surprise no one.

[SoapBox]

2. More lies from the 1%.

...crooks...thieves...liars...cheaters...

What the fuck is with company owers these days? Guess it's the Bain/Romney Syndrome.

[Poll_Blind]

3. Man that's fucked up. I hope the AFL-CIO prevails! nt

PB

[woo me with science]

4. That's what corporatists do. They LIE and pretend to be what they are not.

Just like those who pose as proud Democrats while supporting indefinite detention, "kill lists" and drone wars, pre-emptive war as administration doctrine, spy centers for mining or surveillance of all phone calls and email without a warrant, internet IDs and internet-censoring measures like ACTA and CISPA, military drones in American skies, coordinated violent crackdowns against peaceful protesters, strip searches for any arrestee, bailouts and settlements for corrupt banks, corporate education deform, anti-union garbage, cutting or "tweaking" Medicare and Social Security, and austerity budgets in an economy that has already impoverished its middle class...

Anything to win, and profit.

[daleanime]

5. +1

[1StrongBlackMan]

10. Gee, Woo ...

Do you have anyone, in particular, that you are talking about as a proud Democrat that is posing?

[limpyhobbler]

11. +1. A list that practically writes itself

Personally I would have included dooming the earth to a climate catastrophe by accelerating fossil fuel production at the exact moment we should be slowing it down.

[woo me with science]

16. Thank you.

You're absolutely right that that was an important omission.

I added defense of "drill, drill drill," more pipelines, and selling off the Gulf of Mexico to my next iteration of this rant.

[1StrongBlackMan]

6. Or, ...

Union Made could allow their shop to ... you know ... UNIONIZE.

[freshwest]

9. Best idea yet. And I don't care if it's in China or Bangladesh.

[lexw]

7. That is nuts. I certainly would have thought it was a union made product.

[TheBlackAdder]

14. I'm with you on that. Totally deceptive. n/r

[ProudProgressiveNow]

8. I remember the Chinese island of...

Usa!

[TheBlackAdder]

15. I believed that since the 1970's.

Then, about 20 years ago I heard on the radio that it was just a story, but I saw no actual proof.

Snopes says it isn't true. http://www.snopes.com/business/genius/usa.asp

Now, at the bottom of the Snopes article, there is the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas that can use the "Made in USA" logo. I believe that this is the island that several US companies used to intern Chinese prison labor to manufacture clothing. I believe one of them was Do***rs (if I am not mistaken), as I used to buy them because of the Made in USA logo and then I heard news reports over 20 years ago about this practice.

[limpyhobbler]

12. k/r. yeah they need to stop

[Sanity Claws]

13. I hope they win bigtime

It is purposefully deceptive.

I hope someone also goes after Brooklyn Industries. The stuff is not made in Brooklyn. Most, if not all, comes from China.

[reACTIONary]

17. Here is an interesting history of the AFL-CIO logo / trademark...

http://www.slideshare.net/kim_munson/afllogo-rev1

[bobthedrummer]

18. K&R n/t