What is Labor Day
Labor Daywas created to honor the hard work and achievements of the American workers. TheCentral Labor Union, a local labor federation formed in January of 1882 and a formidable force in New York, wanted to establish “a day of celebrating the honest worker.”
In 1882, working twelve to fifteen hours days, seven days a week to eke out an honest living was common.Labor unionswere created by people trying to help the workers work fewer hours at a fair wage and in acceptable working conditions. The Central Labor Union (CLU) wanted to do more that get members and win strikes. “They wanted to build worker solidarity in the face of jarring changes being wrought by the industrial revolution.”
The idea for Labor Day is believed to have been created byMatthew Maguire, one of the co-founders of the CLU. Credit for the idea was given toPeter McGuire, another labor leader, but not a member of the CLU in 1882, when the first Labor Day was established. There is speculation that Matthew Maguire was not given credit for the idea because of his radical political beliefs. Regardless of who actually came up with the idea, they both played a large part in making the first Labor Day holiday a reality.
The plan for Labor Day started in May of 1882. The date designated for the celebration wasTuesday, September 5th. On the actual day of the event, the organizers were optimistic that they would have a good turnout, but they knew it would be hard for workers to risk being fired to take off and participate in the celebration. Although, only a few people had gathered in City Hall Park in the hour leading up to the beginning of the event, by the end of the day, more than 25,000 people had joined in.
The traditional Labor Day parade started that day. William G. McCabe, a member of the International Typographers Union Local No. 6, was the first Grand Marshall. The parade started at City Hall Park with approximated 400 people, including a brass band. At first the police would not stop people at lights to allow the parade to go through, but as the group made their way up Broadway, more and more unions joined in the march, they were forced to recognize the strength of the number of people and helped along the parade route. The marched passed 5th Avenue and the homes of tycoons Vanderbilt, Morgan and Gould and ended at Wendels’ Elm Park, where there was a massive picnic with festivities, food, and beer.
The event was so popular that the organizers decided to have another one a year later on September 5, 1883. The annual Labor Day holiday began to spread out to other cities and by 1886 was a national event. Politicians began to take notice of the holiday’s popularity. By 1887, five states, including New York, had made Labor Day an official holiday. Seven years later, in 1894, “President Grover Clevelandsigned into law a measure establishing Labor Day as a holiday for all federal workers.” This law established Labor Day as the first Monday in September.
Today, many people enjoy the benefit of this legislation and get a three day weekend to celebrate Labor Day. Some people are not so lucky. Although Labor Day is a national holiday, employers are not required to let people have the day off. All federal, state and local governments give their employers this day off, as do most factories. But, employers of stores such as Wal-Mart, Kroger, Dillard’s, JC Penney, and similar places do not let their employees off. In fact, Labor Day is one of the busiest shopping days of the year, as well as one of the busiest days for restaurants. So people who work for these types of organizations will most likely not get the holiday off.
Parades and picnics are still a big part of Labor Day celebrations. Families get together to reunite from afar and celebrate their lives and good fortunes. But, it’s important that what Labor Day really stands for is not lost. It’s not just about getting a day off. It’s about the fight the labor leaders put up in behalf of workers for them to get paid better, work less hours, and to work in better conditions. That is something people don’t want to lose sight of.
