Labor Day History

Labor Day history explains the consequence of unions in the labor movement. As an American, it is important to understand why we celebrate Labor Day as a holiday. History teaches us where we come from and, by comparison, shows us how we have evolved. Labor Day is celebrated on the first Monday in September and over the years has been recognized as the unofficial end of summer. What began as an organized Labor Union crusade for the working men and women of American has turned into a day of leisure for all.

The concept of Labor Day was hatched during the period in American history known as the labor movement. Unlike the highly political unions of today, the labor unions of 1882 toiled to establish better wages and working conditions for American workers. The first Labor Day parade took place in New York City on September 1982 when 10,000 workers marched from City Hall to Union Square to call attention to and to show appreciation for the average working man with a holiday.

The early Labor Day celebrations included a parade, a rally and the opportunity for workers to air their grievances and to find solutions to the issues of better working conditions and salaries. Early Labor Day history is filled with Labor Union events and protests. The first state to officially recognize Labor Day as a holiday was Oregon in 1887. As the movement began to spread from state to state, Congress, through legislation, made Labor Day an official federal holiday 1894.

Labor Day was the creation of the Labor Unions during the labor movement in America. Labor Day was once an important platform for labor reform. In the century to follow the first Labor Day parade and rally, Labor Day has just become a peaceful day off of work for local, state and federal government employees throughout America. The day of big politically powerful Labor Unions in America has passed with the flight of American companies relocating and outsourcing jobs to other nations who have lower labor and operating costs.