If Memorial Day is the official start of summer, then Labor Day is the bookend that brings it to a close. And really, the sentiment behind the holiday should always be top of mind — especially as we gear up for the busy season ahead.
Labor Day, which always falls on the first Monday in September (FYI, Sept. 5 this year), makes for a three-day weekend packed with backyard barbecues, baseball games and end-of-the-season beach trips.
But the federal holiday wasn’t always the fancy-free, idyllic day we've come to know and love. Many Americans don’t realize just how much it's steeped in history, and that it actually came about as a result of working people simply wanting to be treated fairly.
Before you beeline to the beach (or wherever else the long weekend takes you), read these fun and fascinating Labor Day facts to learn more about the holiday's past and present.
More than half of Americans are expected to travel over Labor Day weekend
For many, Labor Day weekend is the last chance to travel before work and school kick into high gear. A recent study by The Vacationer found that more than 53% of people have Labor Day travel plans and of that, 14% plan to fly and 35% will drive.
Although some stay local, others take view the three-day weekend as an opportunity to check a new destination off their list. According to Airbnb, this year's top trending cities include:
- Columbus, Ohio
- Raleigh, North Carolina
- Tampa, Florida
- North Kingstown, Rhode Island
- Jacksonville, Florida
- Cambridge, Massachusetts
- San Francisco, California
- Reno, Nevada
- Saint Petersburg, Florida
- North Charleston, South Carolina
Other countries celebrate May Day
Think of May Day, celebrated on May 1 (fitting, we know), as the international version of Labor Day.
Although it's primarily celebrated in other countries, the holiday, also called Workers' Day and International Workers' Day, has American roots. More than a century ago, the International Socialist Conference in 1889 named May Day a labor holiday in commemoration of the Haymarket Affair, a violent confrontation between police and labor protestors that took place on May 4, 1886, in Chicago, Illinois.
The United States doesn't officially recognize May Day, but many countries around the world do. For example, Italy celebrates "La Festa dei Lavori," giving many Italians time off from work to recharge with their friends and families.
It all started with a parade
It’s widely believed that on September 5, 1882, union leaders marched in what is thought of as the very first Labor Day parade. Over 20,000 disgruntled New York City workers from a wide variety of industries, such as clothing makers and railroad workers (including children), had enough of their unsafe working conditions after being forced to work over 12 hours a day in spaces that were making them sick.
Post-parade activities haven't changed
After marching just under five miles from New York City’s City Hall to 42nd Street, the workers, who took unpaid leave to be at the event, met up with their families for various activities like enjoying picnics and lighting fireworks.
Canada celebrated "Labour Day" before us
“Labour Day," as it’s spelled by our neighbors to the north, was first celebrated in Canada in 1894 — on the first Monday of September, just like us.
Although it didn't become official until 1894, the holiday started percolating decades before that through a series of demonstrations. According to CBC News, on March 25, 1872, the Toronto Typographical Union went on strike in favor of a shorter workweek. Many protesters were jailed, but later that year, Parliament legalized unions.
The founder of Labor Day is widely contested
No one is 100% sure who actually started Labor Day here in the United States, but it’s between two people and their last names are incredibly similar. While some records show that Peter J. McGuire, co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, got it going, others believe that Matthew Maguire, a secretary of the Central Labor Union, first sparked the concept.
Oregon was the first state to observe Labor Day
Before becoming an official holiday nationwide, Labor Day was adopted state by state. Oregon was the first one to make it a statewide holiday, a full seven years before it was passed by Congress.
President Grover Cleveland made it a federal holiday
On June 28, 1894, President Grover Cleveland made Labor Day official by signing it into law, designating the first Monday in September to always be Labor Day. The day honors the American labor force and the upholding of laws that make work conditions healthier and safer.
Coco Chanel broke the “no white after Labor Day” rule
In the late 19th century, the upper crust of society created this unofficial rule. "It [was] insiders trying to keep other people out and outsiders trying to climb in by proving they know the rules,” Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, told Time.
But today, people have begun to disregard the old rule. In fact, as far back as the 1920s, fashion designer Coco Chanel would wear white all year-round, and many chic sorts have done the same since then. The moral of the story? Wear those white pants in October.
There’s still a New York City Labor Day parade today
Currently, the New York City Central Labor Council still puts on a Labor Day parade, which is held just north of the location of the original 1882 march.
Labor Day is observed on a Monday for a reason
While the very first Labor Day in 1882 took place on a Tuesday, it switched to a Monday once it was adopted by the states.
Nowadays, Labor Day takes place on a Monday so employees can enjoy a three-day weekend. Other federal holidays are observed on Mondays as well (like Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Memorial Day) and will stay that way thanks to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act of 1968, something that ensured that federal employees could have three-day holiday weekends.
Labor Day continues to celebrate millions in the workforce
As the United States Census Bureau reports, as of 2017, Labor Day honors 159.8 million people, all 16 and over, in the nation’s labor force.