Good Afternoon ZSE,
I know a lot of us are working but hopefully some people are getting some well deserved rest and relaxation today. Being Labor Day we thought it was important to highlight a couple of important facts surrounding the tumultuous and often deadly history that got us here today.
Labor Day Became an Official Holiday 12 Years After the First Labor Day Event
The first U.S. Labor Day was celebrated September 5, 1882, in New York City. The Central Labor Union organized a parade for workers. Workers took unpaid leave and marched through the city. At that time, most Americans worked 12-hour days, seven-days a week to make ends meet. On June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories. Oregon was the first state to celebrate Labor Day as a legal holiday in 1887.
The Difference Between Labor Day & May Day
May Day and Labor Day are often confused. While May Day actually originated in the U.S., it is not a federal holiday; however, it is a recognized holiday in over 80 countries across the world. Why not the U.S.? Because on May 4, 1886, a labor union rally (calling for shorter working hours) in Chicago’s Haymarket Square turned violent when a bomb exploded in the crowd, killing seven police officers and four civilians. What became known as the Haymarket Riot outraged working people and their allies across the world, and they started May Day to remember its martyrs and celebrate the struggles of working people. However, when choosing a day for Labor Day, President Cleveland chose the first Monday in September as a way to avoid commemorating the Haymarket Riot, fearing it would build support for communism or other radical causes.
We as a society have come a long way from working 12 hour days, 7 days a week but the work is never done. Our economy as we know it would be nothing without the American worker and we have to remain vigilant to not only retain what we have fought for but continue to fight for what we deserve.
If you are interested, here are a couple of very interesting articles highlighting some of the hard fought labor battles, one of the most brutal being the Everett Massacre that took place right here in Washington in 1916.
Mental Floss: 6 Deadly Labor Disputes
In Solidarity,
Amy Sizemore