Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Wisconsin-Made & Union-Made Gift Ideas

When you’re making your holiday purchases, remember to prioritize buying union-made, American-made and Wisconsin-made products.  Wisconsin workers make a wide-variety of goods and food stuff for your holiday shopping wish list.  

Every time you buy Wisconsin-made, American-made or union-made goods you are supporting good jobs in this country and in your neighborhood.  Support local workers and local jobs, Buy Wisconsin!  Wisconsin-made gift ideas and union-made gift ideas are below.  

Find great Wisconsin-made products at: buywi.org

Make your own Wisconsin AFL-CIO Blue Fist holiday ornament.  Follow the directions here: http://buywi.org/ornament.pdf 

Wisconsin-Made Gift Ideas

•    Regal Ware Pots and Pans, made in West Bend.
•    Wigwam Socks, made in Sheboygan.
•    Rowe Pottery, made in Cambridge.
•    Miller Beer, made in Milwaukee.
•    Usinger’s Sausage and Smoked Meats, made in Milwaukee.
•    Klement’s Sausages.
•    Carmex Lip Balm, made in Franklin, makes a great stocking stuffer.
•    Cold Weather Gear at Wolf Song Wear, made in Bayfield, or Technical Advantage Gear.
•    John Deere lawn mowers made in Horicon.
•    Master Lock locks made in Milwaukee (check the label).
•    Speed Queen washing machines from Alliance Laundy, made in Ripon.  

Union-Made Gift Ideas

Apparel and Accessories
Joseph Abboud (UNITE HERE)
Majestic Athletic (UNITE HERE)
Timex watches (IAM)
Naturalizer shoes (UFCW)
Nunn Bush shoes (UFCW)
Red Wing Shoes (UFCW)

Beauty Products
Avon (UFCW)
Caress skin care (UFCW)
ChapStick (USW)
Dove beauty products (UFCW)
Revlon (UAW)
Old Spice (UFCW)

Games
(All made by RWDSU/UFCW)
Barrel of Monkeys
Battleship
Candy Land
Chutes and Ladders
Clue
Connect 4
Game of Life
Hi Ho Cherry-O
Monopoly
Mouse Trap
Operation
Pictionary
Risk
Scrabble
Sorry
Taboo
Twister
Yahtzee

Sports Equipment
American Athletic (Russell Brands) (UAW)
Louisville Slugger (UAW and IBT)
MacGregor Golf clubs (IBB)
Standard Golf (IAM)
Top-Flite golf balls (IBB)

Stocking Stuffers
Rayovac batteries (IBT and UAW)
Bic Lighters (USW)
Ghirardelli chocolates (BCTGM)
Jelly Belly (BCTGM)
Laffy Taffy (BCTGM)
Tootsie Roll Pops (BCTGM)

Wine and Beer
(Wines brought to you by UFW.)
Chateau Ste. Michelle (IBT)
Columbia Crest
St. Supery
Charles Krug
C.K. Mondavi
Gallo of Sonoma
Miller Beer (UAW and IBT)
Miller High Life
Miller Genuine Draft
Miller Lite
Milwaukee’s Best
Icehouse
Red Dog
Anheuser-Busch (IBT and IAM)
Budweiser
Budweiser American Ale
Bud Light
Michelob
Shock Top
Busch
Rolling Rock
O’Doul’s

PETITION: Stop RTW in Wisconsin

There’s a shady new front group in town, gearing up to attack workers and Wisconsin’s middle class.  On December 1, a group with ties to the Koch Brothers launched an organization called “Wisconsin Right to Work” to “aggressively promote” anti-worker policies in the state legislature.  On December 2, Rep. Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield) publicly promised to introduce an anti-worker Right to Work bill during the 2015-2016 legislative session.  On December 4, Sen. Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) said the Senate would lead on Right to Work and take it up in just a matter of weeks.

Sign the petition today:  Click here to stand firm against Right to Work in Wisconsin.  This bill is a scheme by out-of-state special interests to lower our wages and hurt our entire middle class.

Right to Work isn’t what it seems.  It is a complicated and controversial anti-worker bill brought to you by out-of-state special interests that want to drive down wages and line their own pockets. 

Here are the Facts

• RTW doesn’t create jobs.  Passing RTW won't create even one job in Wisconsin.  RTW is a power grab by out-of-state special interests who want to eliminate unions and stack the deck even more in their favor, all at the expense of the middle class.
• RTW is an attack on the middle class. These anti-worker Right To Work laws just force all working families to work harder for lower pay and less benefits, whether they're in a union or not. The average worker makes about $5,000 less and pensions are lower and less secure in Right to Work states. If we don’t stop these attacks, the middle class will continue to shrink.
•  All working people deserve real freedom, not laws like these. Freedom is about being able to earn a living wage, balance life with work and come home safe after a day's work.  Freedom is the ability to speak out about workplace conditions without fear of retaliation.  This is what we need to work toward, not laws like these.

Now that you have the facts, click here to sign the petition to stop attacks on Wisconsin workers and our freedom to earn a decent wage. 

The truth is Right to Work benefits the people at the top while hurting the rest of us.  Don’t be fooled -- when powerful special interests win, it’s people who work for a living and the middle class that loses.  

Wisconsin’s Right to Work Organization: Another Ploy to Attack the Middle Class and Roll Back Workers' Rights

 

There's a new special interest group in town and its goal is to attack workers' rights and Wisconsin's middle class by pushing unsafe, unfair and unnecssary Right to Work legislation. 

So-called Right to Work means fewer Wisconsin jobs, not more. Right to Work is a policy that attacks Wisconsin’s workers, our wages, our safety on the job and our middle class. Right to Work is nothing more than an attempt by corporate special interests to drive down wages and erode the middle class.

The formation of this group is just another way for CEOs and multinational corporations to weaken unions and stack the deck even more in their favor, all at the expense of our middle class. It’s a power grab by the same people who ship our jobs overseas and offshore their profits to avoid paying taxes, shifting the burden to the rest of us - the same people who oppose raising the minimum wage and support privatizing Social Security.

The middle class makes our country great, but it’s struggling. Wisconsin is powered by our middle class – by the nurses, steel workers, teachers and construction workers who help shape our future, keep us safe and drive our economy.  Right to Work would roll back the clock on workers’ rights and take Wisconsin in the wrong direction.

We expect the Legislature to focus on critical issues like creating good-paying jobs and reviving our sluggish economy.

Get the facts on why Right to Work is wrong for everyone at: http://www.wrongforeveryone.com/more-facts-on-right-to-work/