Can a Nonunion Printer Print The Union Label?
No! The unions control the label or “bug” and they have full rights to it. According to PIA/GATF HR Director Jim Kyger, “Using the union label means that all operations in the production of the goods bearing the label were made by a specific union or several unions affiliated with a trade council such as Allied Printing Trades Council. This goes from pre-press through post-press. Is is quite clear that unions have the legal right to control both who can use its label and the circumstances under which the label can be used. A printer who manipulated, printed or bound the union label without authorization can be liable and be forced to pay damages of triple profits and possibly attorney’s fees.” If a customer requests that you print the union bug and you are a union-free shop, then you may well find yourself in a potentially precarious position and may be subject to litigation. In other words: DON’T DO IT. You should refuse the job or farm it out to a unionized printer who is authorized
