The Union Label and Service Trades Department, AFLâÂÂCIO was founded on April 12, 1909, to promote the products and services produced in America by trade union membersâÂÂespecially those products and services identified by a union label, shop card, store card, and/or service button. The department is a constitutionally mandated department of the AFLâÂÂCIO.
The department's offices are located at the AFLâÂÂCIO headquarters in Washington, D.C. The department has many state and local councils and committees, and works closely with AFLâÂÂCIO state and local labor bodies to carry out its functions.
The ULS&TD primary function is to promote the union label. These emblems demonstrate that the employees who make the product or provide the service are union workers and that they are treated fairly by their employers.
The ULS&TD also coordinates national boycotts that have been endorsed by the AFLâÂÂCIO executive council. The department maintains and publishes the "Do Not Buy" list of companies being boycotted, along with the products and services involved. The "Label Letter" publication is the most visible means the department uses to publicize boycott updates. The "Label Letter" features special interest stories, alerts, a "Do Buy" section, and other relevant information. Member unions of the AFLâÂÂCIO and their local affiliates often reproduce sections and articles of the newsletter to spread the "union label message" to union members and their families.