Union Labels

Union labels were introduced by An Act to amend the Trade Mark and Design Act (1927) 17 George V c. 71.  Only 14 examples—just 2 of which are currently active—remain in CIPO’s online trademark database and .xml data, this being one of them (see TMDA42786):

You can’t investigate union labels via CIPO’s online trademark database because the union label category is not exposed for public search purposes via the database.  For search purposes, CIPO puts union labels  in the “trademark” category along with certification marks, distinguishing guises, etc. as explained in the Select category of trademark section of the online database’s Help file.  In order to investigate union labels one must work with CIPO’s trademark .xml data.

As defined in 17 George V c. 71, “ ‘Union label’ means any mark, term, design, emblem, figure, sign, seal, stamp, diagram, ticket, device or form of advertisement, adopted by a labour union”.

The same statute provided¹ for registration, by labour unions, of union labels “...adopted bv any labour union to designate, make known, or distinguish any goods, wares, merchandise, or product of labour, wholly or partly manufactured, produced, or prepared by the labour of such union, or of any member or members thereof”.  However, placement of union labels “...upon any goods, wares, merchandise, or product of labour, without the consent of the owner or proprietor of such goods, wares, or merchandise” was prohibited².  Various anti-counterfeiting measures were also enacted³ in respect of union labels.

The Unfair Competition Act (1932) 22-23 George V c. 38 was the successor to the Trade Mark and Design Act.  However, apart from grandfathering preexisting union labels by carrying them over⁴ onto the register established pursuant to the Unfair Competition Act, the latter statute did not contain provisions respecting union labels as set forth in the Trade Mark and Design Act.  Consequently, union labels were registered  in Canada only between 1927 and 1932.

Part III (sections 30 - 32) of the Industrial Design and Union Label Act, RSC 1952, c. 150 (proclaimed in force on 15 September 1953) enacted certain protective and anti-counterfeiting provisions respecting union labels, but those provisions were repealed upon coming into force (on 1 July 1954) of the Trade Marks Act (1953) 1-2 Eliz II, c. 49, s. 68(2)(b)(ii).

The current statute (Trademarks Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13) again grandfathered preexisting union labels by carrying the register established pursuant to the Unfair Competition Act over onto the current trademarks register⁵ .

As highlighted in the online database extract below, CIPO continues to maintain the union label category, although it cannot be directly accessed via the online database.

The table below summarizes the 14 union labels (2 active & 12 inactive) that currently exist in CIPO’s online trademark database and .xml data (click the Regn. No. hyperlinks to open the online database page for that union label):

Owner	Regn. No.	Regn. Date	Status
Imperial Tobacco Limited	TMDA32144	07-Oct-1922	Expunged 23 Dec 1987
International Allied Printing Trades Association	TMDA41593	20-May-1927	Expunged 10 Apr 2003
International Typographical Union Of North America	TMDA41594	20-May-1927	Expunged 11 Dec 1987
International Association Of Machinists And Aerospace Workers	TMDA41652	04-Jun-1927	Expunged 20 Nov 1987
International Association Of Machinists And Aerospace Workers	TMDA41651	04-Jun-1927	Expunged 20 Nov 1987
International Brotherhood Of Paper Makers	TMDA42447	26-Sep-1927	Expunged 20 Nov 1987
International Brotherhood Of Paper Makers	TMDA42448	26-Sep-1927	Expunged 20 Nov 1987
United Brotherhood Of Carpenters And Joiners Of America	TMDA42786	05-Nov-1927	Registered
International Brotherhood Of Painters And Allied Trades	TMDA43920	19-May-1928	Expunged 10 Apr 2003
International Brotherhood Of Painters And Allied Trades	TMDA43921	19-May-1928	Expunged 10 Apr 2003
International Brotherhood Of Electrical Workers	TMDA43975	28-May-1928	Expunged 12 Apr 2018
Sheet Metal Workers' International Association	TMDA44252	19-Jul-1928	Expunged 10 Apr 2003
International Union Of Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers	TMDA46485	31-May-1929	Registered
Hotel And Restaurant Employees And Bartenders International Union	TMDA49138	09-Apr-1930	Expunged 20 Nov 1987

---

1 See An Act to amend the Trade Mark and Design Act (1927) 17 George V c. 71, section 2^↩

2 See An Act to amend the Trade Mark and Design Act (1927) 17 George V c. 71, section 2^↩

3 See An Act to amend the Trade Mark and Design Act (1927) 17 George V c. 71, sections 9 & 10^↩

4 See Unfair Competition Act (1932) 22-23 George V c. 38, Section 23^↩

5 See Trademarks Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13, section 27(1)^↩