I came across a picture of this label in a book I was listing, called Textiles and Clothing, from 1923. I hadn’t though of the National Consumers’ League in quite a while, and didn’t really know the history, so of course I was interested in finding out more.
The book states that it had existed for 25 years, which means it started around 1898. In reality, it started with four chapters in four states in 1890, with the National Consumers’ League being established in 1899, with the purpose of protecting workers in sweat shops. It was trying to improve working conditions as well as wagers for the workers, most of whom, of course, were women. The labels were affixed to clothing “manufactured in factories under sanitary conditions.” They do have the disclaimer that the label is not a guarantee as to hours or wages, but does mean that it was not produced with child labor. I guess that they had to start somewhere, right? It also meant that state labor laws were obeyed.
The Consumers’ League also published what they called a “white list” of stores that treated their employees fairly. Socially conscious shopping in the Victorian era! Who knew? In reading their goals in an 1899 newspaper, it reads much like the anti-fast fashion movement now: their “chief purpose….is to persuade buyers to practice the new economic virtue of creating excellence by buying excellence,” and to “educate consumers or buyers by bringing before them the conditions under which goods are made and sold, and urge upon them the importance of giving patronage where good goods prevail.” And over 120 years later, we are still fighting that fight. Though child labor and working conditions have been improved in most of the US, many companies have just moved overseas, where sweat shops are still a thing.
The Consumers’ Union originally started in the eastern states, where sweatshops were more prevalent, but by the next year, it was spreading across the country. In Minneapolis, the first attempt to start a branch failed in 1898, but by the next year, it was being well established, with the hard work of a Presbyterian minister. A 1906 article in Cleveland’s Plain Dealer states that all of their funds were obtained mysteriously, without any type of fundraising.
The ladies of Cleveland led the charge during the Christmas season, pushing customers to do their shopping early, so as not to wear out the clerks over the holiday season. They also visited managers to try to get them to give the clerks more rest breaks. You can imagine how this went over! One manager indignantly replied “you have no right to question me…I have as much right to go to your home and inquire how you treat your cook!” Oh, the fragile male ego…….still alive and going strong today!
In 1935, the League was fighting the state of Virginia, where a ten hour day was permitted for female workers, with no maximum. They petitioned to have the womens’ work week limited to 48 hours. Their work has touched all aspects of worker’s environment, from minimum wage to utilities, and everything in between. It is still active today, though they do receive some criticism these days, such as receiving financial support from Amazon, not an icon of fair treatment of employees.
The Vintage Fashion Librarian 