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Why do Americans and Canadians celebrate Labor Day? -Kenneth C. Davis - YouTube
Channel: TED-Ed
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How's this for a strange idea:
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a day off from work in honor of work itself?
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Actually, that is what Labor Day,
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celebrated in the United States and Canada
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on the first Monday of every September,
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is all about.
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The first American Labor Day
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was celebrated in New York City
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on September 5th, 1882,
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as thousands of workers and their families
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came to Union Square for a day in the park.
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It was not a national holiday
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but had been organized by a union
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to honor workers and their hard efforts
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with a rare day of rest,
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halfway between July 4th and Thanksgiving.
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There were picnics and a parade,
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but there were also protests.
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The workers had gathered,
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not just to rest and celebrate,
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but to demand fair wages,
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the end of child labor,
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and the right to organize into unions.
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During the period known as
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The Industrial Revolution,
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many jobs were difficult, dirty and dangerous.
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People worked for twelve hours,
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six days a week,
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without fringe benefits,
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such as vacations, health care and pensions,
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and if you were young, chances are
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you were doing manual labor
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instead of your ABCs and fractions.
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Children as young as ten
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worked in some of the most hazardous places,
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like coal mines or factories filled with boiling vats
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or dangerous machines.
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Trying to win better pay, shorter hours
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and safer conditions
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workers had begun to form labor unions
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in America and Canada,
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but the companies they worked for
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often fought hard to keep unions out
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and to supress strikes.
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At times, this led to violent battles
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between workers and business owners
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with the owners often backed up by the police,
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or even the military.
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In the following years,
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the idea of Labor Day caught on in America
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with official celebrations reaching 30 states.
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But then came the violent
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Haymarket Square Riot of 1886,
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which led to the deaths of several policemen
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and workers in Chicago
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and the execution of four union leaders.
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After that, many labor and political groups
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around the world
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had begun to mark Haymarket Square on May 1st,
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which became known as
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International Workers' Day.
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In 1894, President Grover Cleveland
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signed the law making Labor Day a
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federal holiday in America,
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only days after he had sent
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12,000 soldiers to end
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a violent railroad strike
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that resulted in the death of several people.
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The original September date was kept,
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partly to avoid the more radical associations of May 1st.
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Canada also created its Labor Day in 1894.
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But, in spite of this new holiday,
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it would be a long time before the changes
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that workers wanted
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became a reality.
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In 1938, during the Great Depression
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that left millions without jobs,
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt
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signed a law calling for an eight-hour work day,
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a five-day work week,
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and an end to child labor,
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some of the first federal protections for American workers.
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As America and Canada celebrate Labor Day,
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most of the two countries' children enjoy
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a day off from school.
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But it is important to remember
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that there was a time that
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everyday was a labor day for children in America and Canada,
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and unfortunately,
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the same fact remains true
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for millions of children around the world today.
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