New Year’s Resolution: Shop Better in 2016

With 2016 almost here, now is the time to make those life-changing New Year’s resolutions. Eating better makes almost everyone’s list. But how about shopping better? Yes, Americans love to shop, spending $4.5 trillion a year on retail. But how we spend our money can make a real difference. Where we shop and on what products we spend our hard-earned dollars can greatly influence millions of lives while also reflecting our own values. That’s the mission of Labor 411, a consumer guide that highlights businesses and products that produce good jobs for all. “This 2016, we ask that the American consumer at least consider how they’re spending their money, where it might be going,” said Labor 411 Founder and Publisher Cherri Senders. “Our union-made, American made message is clear: Nothing beats goods and services created and provided by skilled labor here in the U.S.” Labor 411’s mission is clear: By supporting businesses that treat their employees well with fair pay, good benefits and safe working conditions, we strengthen the middle class and we strengthen America. Senders has previously called for a consumer movement that lifts all boats in several op-eds, most recently published by the L.A. Daily News and the Sacramento Bee. Founded in 2008, Labor 411’s print and online guides now include more than 10,000 listings covering hotels, restaurants, retail outlets and other businesses in three of the nation’s top consumer markets: Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Labor 411’s website (www.labor411.org), featuring geolocating, allows consumers to pinpoint by neighborhood where their shopping dollars can support living-wage companies and their communities and avoid retailers that do not treat their workers well. Labor 411 also produces annual print guides in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and recently launched its premiere Washington, D.C. edition.