Union-made clothing UK retailers?

Union made clothing is clothing made in a unionised workplace, i.e. not a sweat shop. It seems popular in the USA and most of the websites are US sites - I don't mind ordering from the US but most of the sites are also wholesale only. Does anyone know of any good retailers, ideally UK based, who sell union made clothing?

thanks

Union made clothing is clothing made in a unionised workplace, i.e. not a sweat shop. It seems popular in the USA and most of the websites are US sites - I don't mind ordering from the US but most of the sites are also wholesale only. Does anyone know of any good retailers, ideally UK based, who sell union made clothing?

 

thanks

Unions work quite differently in the US. One union may have exclusivity over one workplace and another union over another workplace, and yet a third workplace may be completely un-unionised.

In the UK, any workplace is likely to be a mixture of union and non-union staff.

So I think what you probably want is to look for things made in the UK, or perhaps in the EU, or even in the first world in general; as most first world countries are respectful of the right to collective bargaining.

I'm not in a union, but a lot of my colleagues are. We get on fine. That's as it should be. Union membership should be a choice.

Unions work quite differently in the US. One union may have exclusivity over one workplace and another union over another workplace, and yet a third workplace may be completely un-unionised.

In the UK, any workplace is likely to be a mixture of union and non-union staff.

 

So I think what you probably want is to look for things made in the UK, or perhaps in the EU, or even in the first world in general; as most first world countries are respectful of the right to collective bargaining.

 

I'm not in a union, but a lot of my colleagues are. We get on fine. That's as it should be. Union membership should be a choice.

There are sweat shops in the UK though, unfortunately. Not every business pays minimum wage and migrant labour is sometimes exploited. I do try and buy stuff generally that's made in the EU but if it's made in a unionized workplace then that's an extra guarantee against sweated labour.

There are sweat shops in the UK though, unfortunately. Not every business pays minimum wage and migrant labour is sometimes exploited. I do try and buy stuff generally that's made in the EU but if it's made in a unionized workplace then that's an extra guarantee against sweated labour.

The only way you could have that would be to change the law to allow people to be compelled to join a union in order to work. Or do you mean something else by "unionised"?

Perhaps somebody could collect data to show which businesses have a workforce over 50% union members? Would that be enough?

I'm not trying to be awkward but you need to be clear on what you mean by "unionised" as it doesn't mean much in the context of UK law. UK law is pretty good at keeping a sensible balance of power and proper separation between unions and employers.

Not union, but excellent "right on" credentials (and I mean that in a good way) very good jackets apparently, waterproof which is handy so you don't drown in your own tears when you see how much they cost;)

http://www.paramo-clothing.com/en-gb/ourethics/

Not union, but excellent "right on" credentials (and I mean that in a good way) very good jackets apparently, waterproof which is handy so you don't drown in your own tears when you see how much they cost;)

 

http://www.paramo-clothing.com/en-gb/ourethics/

Cheers tin, I'm not looking for a waterproof at the moment but it's good to know Nikwax are an ethical company as I sometimes buy waterproofing stuff.

These might be worth a go, smallish high end company with a bit of history. Started from a co-op https://www.solovair-shoes.com/about-solovair/history/?v=79cba1185463

http://www.mamnick.com/

A mix of UK and Japanese manufactured items.

Union made clothing is clothing made in a unionised workplace, i.e. not a sweat shop. It seems popular in the USA and most of the websites are US sites - I don't mind ordering from the US but most of the sites are also wholesale only. Does anyone know of any good retailers, ideally UK based, who sell union made clothing?

 

thanks

A couple of links for you that are popular in the TU movement:

Ethical Threads: http://www.ethicalthreads.co.uk/index.aspx

Philosophy Football: https://www.philosophyfootball.com

A couple of links for you that are popular in the TU movement:

 

Ethical Threads: http://www.ethicalthreads.co.uk/index.aspx

 

Philosophy Football: https://www.philosophyfootball.com

thanks for those, it's a shame Ethical Threads don't do hoodies. I also found this one https://rapanuiclothing.com/

As with many of the companies that emphasise the eco-friendly nature of their products, they are somewhat vague as to the working practices in the factory. They say it's made in an 'ethically accredited wind-powered factory' whatever that means. I will email them to ask them where their stuff is made - it seems it might be made in the UK.