Labor Day: More Than Just a Long Weekend
Introduction
Can you believe Labor Day weekend is almost here?
Summer feels like it just started. Yet, this three-day weekend signals that fall is near. Good news if you’ve been through another hot Texas summer!
What’s Labor Day All About?
Labor Day is more than just a day off. It has an interesting backstory. Here are some quick facts to know before you start grilling.
Origins of Labor Day
Labor Day is a modern holiday. But it didn’t exist until the late 19th century. Working conditions were bad back then. Employees worked long hours. They also worked six or seven days a week. Workplaces were often unsafe.
The labor movement started because of these working conditions. Workers protested for better rights, and labor unions played key roles. They fought for safer workplaces. They also fought for shorter work hours and against child labor.
Matthew Maguire proposed Labor Day in 1882. He was the secretary of the Central Labor Union of New York. He wanted a holiday for workers. The goal was to honor the labor movement.
Matthew Maguire often gets the credit. But some say Peter J. McGuire had a similar idea. He was from the American Federation of Labor. Despite this, most agree on one thing. The early labor movement was crucial. It pushed for a holiday to honor American workers.
The Path to Making Labor Day a Holiday
Labor Day did not appear out of nowhere – it took years of activism and meaningful events to set the stage for this holiday honoring workers to come to fruition. One significant event that increased sympathy for workers was the tragic Haymarket affair in 1886 in Chicago, where a bomb went off at a labor demonstration, resulting in the deaths of seven police officers and several civilians. The Pullman Strike of 1894, which caused unrest until President Cleveland sent federal troops, also garnered support for workers’ rights. These events and ongoing efforts from labor unions like the American Federation of Labor heightened public support for the labor movement and recognition of workers’ contributions. This set the scene for Labor Day to be embraced as a much-deserved holiday for American workers.
Labor Day Becomes an Official Holiday
While the idea for Labor Day was conceived in the early 1880s, it took longer to be adopted as an official holiday. Oregon was the first state to make Labor Day a legal holiday in 1887 when it passed a law designating it as a state-wide public holiday to be celebrated yearly.
Over the next few years, more and more individual states passed laws establishing Labor Day as a holiday. However, it was yet to be a federal holiday across the United States. The push for Labor Day was strengthened by sympathy for workers after the violent Pullman railroad strike in 1894. That same year, concerned about growing public support for making a holiday, President Grover Cleveland officially signed a law declaring Labor Day as a federal holiday to be celebrated annually on the first Monday of September.
Labor Day Goes Nationwide
While Labor Day celebrations were already taking place in several states in the late 19th century, it did not become an official federal holiday until 1894. That year, concerned about growing public support for a legal holiday, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill designating the first Monday of September as a federal holiday across the United States. Interestingly, at this time, President Cleveland was using federal troops to quell the Pullman railroad strike that was happening around this period. Some historians think Cleveland’s support of Labor Day as a national holiday was an attempt to appease workers and calm some of the unrest surrounding the contentious strike.
The First Labor Day Celebrations
The Central Labor Union organized the first Labor Day celebration in New York City on September 5, 1882. They held the first labor day parade from City Hall to Union Square, with over 10,000 workers taking unpaid leave to participate and show their support for the holiday. After this successful first parade, the Central Labor Union made it an annual event. 1884 the first official Labor Day parade was held in New York City. This helped establish a tradition of Labor Day parades that later spread to cities and towns across the country. By 1894, 23 more states had adopted the holiday, and Labor Day celebrations included parades, picnics, barbecues, and more.
The Changing Dates of Labor Day
For decades after Labor Day became a federal holiday, it was celebrated each year on the first Monday of September. However, in 1968, the federal Uniform Monday Holiday Act shifted several holidays to always fall on a Monday. The change was made to create more three-day weekend holidays. Since 1971, Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday of September.
Labor Day in the United States and Canada
In 1894, the same year Labor Day became a federal holiday in the U.S., the Canadian government passed the Trade Union Act, which included declaring Labor Day an official public holiday. Since then, the United States and Canada have celebrated Labor Day concurrently, with the holiday falling on the same date. That means it’s the perfect opportunity for cross-border celebrations!
Fun Facts: Hot Dogs and Labor Day
Of course, no Labor Day is complete without a barbecue! Americans consume a staggering amount of hot dogs over Labor Day weekend each year. Did you know that Americans enjoy a whopping 7 billion hot dogs between Memorial Day and Labor Day? That’s 818 hot dogs every second – now that’s some serious hot dog love! And according to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, 47% of grill owners plan to have a grill-out holiday on Labor Day.
End of Summer Fashion and Labor Day
One fashion rule people often associate with Labor Day involves wearing white. In the late 19th century, it was customary for white clothing to be worn only between Memorial Day in late May and the first Monday in September. The logic was that lighter and brighter white colors were better suited for the summer heat. In contrast, darker, richer colors were more appropriate for fall and winter. Although the strict social rules about white clothing are no longer relevant, the “no white after Labor Day” custom has persisted over time, signaling the transition to fall dressing after the Labor Day holiday.
How We Celebrate Labor Day Today
Today, Labor Day is celebrated as the unofficial end of summer before the fall season begins. People gather for picnics, barbecues, parades, and family reunions to enjoy the long weekend. Many towns and cities host Labor Day parades like the original New York City parade in 1882. Popular foods include classic American fare like hamburgers, hotdogs, baked beans, coleslaw, and pie. Retail stores launch their big Labor Day sales to sell off summer inventory. And many people take advantage of the three-day weekend to enjoy one last summer trip or mini vacation before the cooler weather arrives. However you choose to celebrate, be sure to appreciate the hard-won rights that today’s workers enjoy thanks to the early 20th-century labor movement!
Key Takeaways
- Labor Day originated in the late 1800s during a reform period for workers’ rights and unsafe working conditions.
- Oregon first proclaimed Labor Day an official state holiday in 1887, and it became a federal holiday across the U.S. in 1894
- The first Labor Day celebration was a parade of 10,000 workers in New York City in 1882
- Fashion traditions like not wearing white after Labor Day came from customs about summer clothing in the late 1800s
- President Cleveland signed Labor Day into law federally in 1894 in response to unrest over the Pullman strike.
- The federal holiday is observed on the first Monday of September each year.
- 47% of American grill owners plan to grill on Labor Day.
- Both the U.S. and Canada have honored Labor Day since 1894
- Critical events like strikes and labor activism paved the way for Labor Day to become a holiday.
- Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer with barbecues, sales, and the last long weekend of warm weather.
So there you have it – a crash course on the history behind why we celebrate Labor Day! Found this information enlightening? Share it with your friends and enlighten them, too! Click below to share
As you relax over the three-day weekend this year, remember the generations of workers who fought for the rights we now enjoy. Happy Labor Day!
While Labor Day and the Fourth of July are different holidays, they both celebrate American ideals. If you enjoyed sprucing up your home for patriotic holidays, you might also like my tips in the article “Celebrating Independence Day with Patriotic Decorations.”
Editorial Update: We strive to keep our content accurate and up-to-date. As part of our ongoing efforts, this article has been moved from the “Events + Holidays” Category to the “HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS” Category on September 8, 2023.
