Northwest labor press., August 17, 2012, Page 23, Image 23

Labor Day: How it came about; what it means
“Labor Day differs in every essential
way from the other holidays of the year
in any country,” said Samuel Gompers,
founder and longtime president of the
American Federation of Labor (AFL).
“All other holidays are in a more or less
degree connected with conflicts and
battles of man’s prowess over man, of
strife and discord for greed and power,
of glories achieved by one nation over
another. Labor Day ... is devoted to no
man, living or dead, to no sect, race, or
nation.”
Labor Day, the first Monday in Sep-
tember, is a creation of the American la-
bor movement and is dedicated to the
social and economic achievements of
workers. It constitutes a yearly national
tribute to the contributions workers have
made to the strength, prosperity, and
well-being of our country.
F OUNDER OF L ABOR D AY
More than 100 years after the first
Labor Day observance, there is still
some doubt as to who first proposed the
holiday for workers.
Some records show that Peter J.
McGuire, general secretary of the
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners
and a co-founder of the AFL, was first
in suggesting a day to honor those “who
from rude nature have delved and
carved all the grandeur we behold.”
But Peter McGuire’s place in Labor
Day history has not gone unchallenged.
Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a
machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded
the holiday. Research seems to support
the contention that Matthew Maguire,
later the secretary of Local 344 of the
The first state bill was
introduced into the New
York Legislature, but the
first to become law was
passed by Oregon on Feb.
21, 1887. During the year
four more states — Colo-
rado, Massachusetts, New
Jersey, and New York —
created the Labor Day
holiday by legislative
enactment.
International Association of Machinists
in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday
in 1882 while serving as secretary of the
Central Labor Union in New York.
What is clear is that the Central Labor
Union adopted a Labor Day proposal
and appointed a committee to plan a
demonstration and picnic.
T HE F IRST L ABOR D AY
The first Labor Day holiday was cel-
ebrated on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, in
New York City, in accordance with the
plans of the Central Labor Union. The
Central Labor Union held its second
Labor Day holiday just a year later, on
Sept. 5, 1883.
In 1884, the first Monday in Sep-
tember was selected as the holiday, as
originally proposed, and the Central La-
bor Union urged similar organizations
in other cities to follow the example of
New York and celebrate a “working-
men’s holiday” on that date. The idea
spread with the growth of labor organi-
zations, and in 1885 Labor Day was
celebrated in many industrial centers of
the country.
L ABOR D AY L EGISLATION
Through the years the nation gave
increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The
first governmental recognition came
through municipal ordinances passed
during 1885 and 1886. From them de-
veloped the movement to secure state
legislation. The first state bill was intro-
duced into the New York Legislature,
but the first to become law was passed
by Oregon on Feb. 21, 1887. During
the year four more states — Colorado,
Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New
York — created the Labor Day holiday
by legislative enactment. By the end of
the decade, Connecticut, Nebraska, and
Pennsylvania had followed suit. By
1894, 23 other states had adopted the
holiday in honor of workers, and on
June 28 of that year, Congress passed
an act making the first Monday in Sep-
tember of each year a legal holiday in
the District of Columbia and the terri-
tories.
A N ATIONWIDE H OLIDAY
The form that the observance and
celebration of Labor Day should take
were outlined in the first proposal of the
holiday — a street parade to exhibit to
the public “the strength and esprit de
corps of the trade and labor organiza-
tions” of the community, followed by a
The strength and
well-being of the
nation depends on
America’s working
men and women.
festival for the recreation and amuse-
ment of the workers and their families.
This became the pattern for the celebra-
tions of Labor Day. Speeches by promi-
nent men and women were introduced
later, as more emphasis was placed
upon the economic and civic signifi-
cance of the holiday.
Still later, by a resolution of the AFL
convention of 1909, the Sunday preced-
ing Labor Day was adopted as Labor
Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual
and educational aspects of the labor
movement.
The character of the Labor Day cel-
ebration has undergone a change over
the years, especially in large industrial
centers where mass displays and huge
parades have proved a problem. This
change, however, is more a shift in em-
phasis and medium of expression. La-
bor Day addresses by leading union of-
ficials, industrialists, educators, clerics
and government officials are given wide
coverage in newspapers, radio, and tel-
evision.
The vital force of labor added mate-
rially to the highest standard of living
and the greatest production the world
has ever known and has brought us
closer to the realization of our tradi-
tional ideals of economic and political
democracy. It is appropriate, therefore,
that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day
to the creator of so much of the nation's
strength, freedom, and leadership — the
American worker.
(Editor’s Note: This article is from
the Northwest Labor Press archives. It
is a history of the Labor Day researched
by the U.S. Department of Labor.)
UNION
MEMBER
of the
CENTURY!
Albert Einstein, Time magazines “Person of the
20th Century” was a visionary scientist,
philosopher, teacher — and a union member. In
fact, he was a founding member of the Princeton
Federation of Teachers Local 552, signing its
charter in 1938. Look ... he was a pretty smart guy,
right? Well? What are you waiting for!
(From the Washington State Labor Council)
Happy Labor Day
and
Thank You!
Peter DeFazio, Democrat
United States Congress
Oregon, District 4
Paid for and authorized by DeFazio for Congress
AUGUST 17, 2012
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
PAGE 23