What Does Labor Day Mean, Today?

Labor Day is the first Monday in September, and it's typically considered the end of summer, though in reality, it's not really. What is Labor Day truly about and what is its history?

With the weakening of unions and the strengthening of corporations, one could seriously say that the purpose of Labor Day has been subverted. The question What is Labor Day is typically answered by saying that it is a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

With the above caveats, I would say that the answer to What is Labor Day is that it is a a "hand-waving, pretend, fake" yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

In fact, internationally, there is something called International Workers Day which is celebrated on May 1st. What is Worker's Day? Pretty much the same thing as Labor Day. To some, it's hard to understand why America chooses to isolate itself from the rest of the world in this way.

Historically, what is Labor Day? The first Labor Day was celebrated on Tuesday, September 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 a year later, on September 5, 1883.

Finally, in 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the official day of holiday, as was originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow suit. With the growth of labor unions, the idea spread and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

On June 28th of 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.

Still, now that we have a national holiday, Labor Day seems less relevant. Sure, it's a day off, and many use it as the last vacation before school really gets into swing. Answering what is Labor Day by saying it is a day off reduces what the common American worker, who has been downtrodden in this day of millionaire CEOs, has done.

What is Labor Day? Today, it's just a holiday, a day off. While it symbolizes the triumph of the American worker, that worker, the middle-class Joe and Jane who bear the brunt of heavy lifting while CEOs take home millions, is under attack.