American flag
Happy Labor Day. We have reached one of the turning points on our calendar and yet another of the major holidays that is observed but not necessarily for the reasons it was established.
The unofficial summer season begins with Memorial Day, an occasion intended to pay tribute to the nation’s war dead but widely celebrated as a kickoff to recreation and fun in warmer weather. Labor Day marks the conclusion of widespread summer fun as children return to school and people start to return to their routines and get ready for fall. Its place at the end of the season makes it something of a bittersweet occasion. Though there are Labor Day observances in many communities, they don’t tend to be as widespread as Memorial Day or Fourth of July observances.
But Labor Day is a real holiday with a real purpose.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, it is intended to celebrate the social and economic achievements of American workers. In the late 19th century labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the contributions workers have made to the nation’s strength, prosperity and well-being.
Initially the holiday was marked in some states and municipalities. In 1887 Oregon was the first to establish a Labor Day holiday, soon followed by New Jersey, Colorado, Massachusetts and New York. Pennsylvania started observing the occasion in 1891. On June 28, 1894, Congress made the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday.
The Labor Department says it’s unclear who came up with the idea but that two men could make a solid claim. Some records show that in 1882, Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, suggested setting aside a day for a “general holiday for the laboring classes” to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.” Others believe machinist Matthew Maguire founded the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. Both Maguire and McGuire attended the country’s first Labor Day parade in New York City in 1883.
The first proposal for a holiday suggested the day should be observed with a street parade to exhibit “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern of Labor Day celebrations, according to the Labor Department, which summarizes the point of the observance quite eloquently:
“American labor has raised the nation’s standard of living and contributed to the greatest production the world has ever known and the labor movement has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pays tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation’s strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.”
We couldn’t agree more. What makes Labor Day special is that it pays tribute to the vast majority of Americans: working people. It gives each of us an opportunity to quietly celebrate our own contributions to our nation.
It’s quite appropriate that most communities go about celebrating this holiday in a low-key way. What could be a more suitable way to show appreciation for our nation’s workers than to give them a long weekend and one more big opportunity to enjoy summer before it starts giving way to fall?
The holiday has its roots in organized labor, which still claims the day as its own, but it is still going strong even as unions have lost much of their power and influence in the American workplace.
We suspect most people don’t stop and think about what this holiday commemorates or why it’s even on the calendar. But we would like to use this occasion to remind our readers about the greatness of American workers, without whom none of our country’s accomplishments would be possible. Ours is a mighty and prosperous nation because of their hard work, determination and endless creativity.
Of course American workers keep facing new challenges. We recently endured a pandemic that caused tremendous change in the way Americans work and took a tremendous toll on many. The advent of artificial intelligence has created much uncertainty in the labor market. And economic worries are always with us.
While so much of the economic conversation is focused at the national and state level, local policies are crucial as well. Communities need to continue efforts to attract more employers and higher-paying positions, including making sure there’s training available to ensure we have people qualified to do today’s new jobs. Doing so will make our region that much more attractive to employers looking to get started, expand or relocate.
It’s in the interest of everyone to ensure that we have a robust, productive workforce celebrating Labor Day for generations to come.
