USA : Labor Day has become a day off for fewer and fewer Americans
Labor unions have seen their membership fall steadily in the past 30 years with the growth of technology and the globalization of the world economy. Peter Maguire, a carpenter, proposed
a working man's holiday in 1885.
I especially want to honor and thank the members of the South Carolina AFL-CIO. The first Labor Day observances were meant to include a parade "to exhibit the strength and espirit de corps of the trade and labor organizations" and give a platform for speeches and a picnic for workers and their families. Because white clothing has traditionally been viewed as more appropriate for summer, the general consensus has been to closet the white clothes in favor of darker, heavier shades.
Labor Day became a federal holiday after a failed attempt at union busting.
The first Labor Days weren't national holidays. Freight and passenger traffic was practically shut down. The economy today is fairly strong and we have a higher standard of living today than nearly anywhere in the world. Working people had organized and fought against the injustices in the workplace: against slave and child labor, unsafe working conditions, long hours, and basic rights in the workplace. Does anyone think employers would be plumping up the pension fund or adding dental care to non-union employee packages if it weren't for a marketplace that included better paid union workers? Some people also will take a road trip, adding a lot of miles for a long holiday weekend getaway. He added that it's been more hard lately and a lot of workers don't know the importance.
Now, fewer than 8 percent of the nation's work force members belong to a recognized labor union.
Any effort at economic development, however, should always include the goal of job growth; not just an increase in the number of people gaining employment, but also the bettering of the workers' economic well-being. 35% of government workers are covered by a union.
No U.S. city has a higher share of workers who belong to a union than Springfield.
Many other state's have Wisconsin-like "Act 10" laws. Because the truth is, that's what's caused some of the frustration that's roiling our politics right now - too many working folks still feel left behind by an economy that's constantly changing. 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.
Then, on May 11, 1894, employees of the Pullman Palace Car Company in Chicago went on strike and union officials called for a boycott of the railway cars.