July 14 (Reuters) - Grocery-store chain Trader Joe's sued its employee union in Los Angeles federal court on Thursday, claiming the union's sales of merchandise related to the company violated its trademark rights.

The grocer's lawsuit said Trader Joe's United sells tote bags, buttons, mugs and other products featuring the store's name and logo that are likely to confuse customers into thinking it made or endorsed them.

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A lawyer for the union, Seth Goldstein, said the lawsuit was part of a "union-busting campaign" to deprive Trader Joe's United of its ability to fund itself, calling it "outrageous" and a violation of the National Labor Relations Act.

A Trader Joe's store in Hadley, Massachusetts was the first to unionize last year and three other stores have unionized since, according to Trader Joe's United's website. The National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint against the company last week for allegedly retaliating against the unionizing workers at the Hadley store.

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Representatives for Trader Joe's did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.

Trader Joe's said in the lawsuit that it first contacted the union in late June to take down its products featuring the "Trader Joe's United" name in the company's distinctive font.

According to the complaint, Trader Joe's United responded earlier this month that it would not comply with the demands and accused the grocer of retaliating...

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