Oregon was the first state, in 1884, to declare a holiday to celebrate the United States laborer. By 1894, thirty states had similar holidays, and Congress passed a bill declaring it a federal holiday, designating the first Monday in September as the official date. The flag shown was the US Flag at that time. Much of the world celebrates Labor Day on May 1st, but the US did not want to look as if it was celebrating the Haymarket Affair, which occurred in Chicago May 1-4, 1886.
Coincidentally, the first Monday in September is also almost exactly halfway between July 4th and Thanksgiving. It was argued that this would give folks evenly spaced breaks from work. I’d like to welcome my Canadian readers, who also celebrate Labor Day on this date.
So how do we celebrate those folks who do the hard labor in this country? Originally, it was with a parade followed by speeches by labor organizers and a picnic. We still seem to get that part right, at least the picnic and the parade! But what are we really celebrating? For me, it has to do with acknowledging the harder jobs that keep this country running. The coal miners who spend their shifts in the dark, farther underground than I would care to be, in dangerous conditions at risk for injury, entrapment, and long term health issues. The barge operators traveling up and down our rivers, away from home and family for days or weeks at a time. The city workers who wake up in the middle of the night in the dead of winter in temperatures well below zero to fix a broken water line so we can have water in our homes. The minimum wage worker who cleans public restrooms, that very few folks seem to think they should leave clean. Have you ever thanked one of these folks for the job they’re doing? Trust me, it makes their day!
The thousands of people who get up every day and go to a job that they may or may not like, to take care of their families and keep food on the table, The hospital staff – not just the “educated professionals,” but the folks down the hot laundry keeping the sheets clean, and in the kitchen doing the dishes, and going from floor to floor mopping rooms and hallways and emptying trash. These are the folks we honor on Labor Day. So please, before you light the grill or head off to watch the parade, say a prayer for the health and safety of these folks. And the next time you pass one of them at work, thank them for a job well done.
Stop back next Monday and see where the North American Shop Hop is visiting next!
Very nice post. Everyone likes to be thanked for a job well done. Yes, I have thanked the lady that cleans the restroom and they smile and it does make their day.
Thanks for these special holiday posts.
Looking forward to next Monday to see where you have been visiting quilt shops.