Volume 16 , Issue 29

Labor Day History (1882)

Do you know the history of Labor Day and how it came to be?

According to the United States Department of Labor, Labor Day is/was the first Monday in September, a creation of the labor movement and was dedicated to the social, 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 our country.

So ... Why don't we honor and give our laborers a Living wage?

The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. It was from these that a movement developed to secure state legislation. The first state bill introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on 21 February 1887. It was during that same year four more states: Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. Toward the end of the decade, Connecticut, Nebraska and Pennsylvania followed suit. In 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on 28 June 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.

There are some records that show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those who from rude nature had delved, carved all the grandeur we behold.

Peter McGuire's place in Labor Day history has not gone unchallenged, though. Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded the holiday. Research supports the contention that Matthew Maguire, later secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Peterson, NJ, proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. It is clear that the Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic.

It is also reported that the first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The second Labor Day holiday was held a year later, on September 5, 1883.   |  View or Add Comments (0 Comments)   |   Receive updates ( subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

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