Did you enjoy your “unofficial end of summer?”
The three-day holiday weekend culminated with Labor Day being observed Monday, Sept. 5.
Many people see Labor Day as a chance to get in any last summer plans before school, activities and other fall schedules kick into high gear.
“I think you can get that with a lot of holidays the further you get from the reasons. Upton Sinclair’s ‘Jungle’ has been a long time ago,” said Derek Lumsden, executive director of Osceola Chamber/Main Street. “I think it shows that people have come a long way from it, even if they do realize what it means, just like Memorial Day or Fourth of July or anything like that. It becomes a symbol of ‘let’s take time and relax,’ and people forget the meaning behind it.”
A history
Here’s a more in-depth look at the labor that went into creating Labor Day.
According to the United States Department of Labor, Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers.
It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of the country.
The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. It became a federal holiday in 1894.
“I think a lot of people work really hard all year round, and this is the government’s way of recognizing, at least once a year, how important those people are, and that everybody needs a day off when possible,” Lumsden said.
The strikes
But, what about the working conditions that led to the formation of Labor Day?
The late 19th and early 20th centuries were a time of big business, with major industrialists and tycoons often termed as “robber barons.”
The average worker was striving for the basic employment and safety protections that are viewed as normal and expected in today’s 21st century society. There were long hours, dangerous working conditions and rampant child-labor practices.
An example is the Pullman Strike of 1894, which was a nationwide railroad strike near Chicago. The strike and boycott shut down the majority of freight and passenger traffic west of Detroit. Workers were upset because of a significant reduction in wages.
Remember, railroads were the main form of transportation back then. Shut them down, and major gridlock and chaos would ensue.
The unions, railroad company and federal government all seemed to be pitted against each other.
President Grover Cleveland, citing a delayed U.S. mail system, declared the strike illegal and sent 12,000 troops to break it up. Two men were killed in the violence that erupted from the stand off.
The aftermath
The strike was soon shut down, but President Cleveland was aware of the aftermath of political unease the situation with the strike and labor unions had brought forth.
Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894. The legislation was rushed through Congress and passed unanimously only six days after the Pullman Strike ended.
The Labor Day holiday has come a long way since its inception more than a century ago.
“It’s good for all the businesses, it’s good for people, in general,” Lumsden said. “Everybody needs a break, and sometimes you just needed the day off, regardless of who you are.”