Four historical facts about the holiday that honors the workers who built this country, and why it means something extra to my family.
For a lot of people, Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer: one last cookout, one last trip to the lake, one last long weekend before fall settles in.
But Labor Day is actually something more than that. It's an annual national tribute to the contributions that workers have made to the strength, success, and security of our country, something I think about often given my own family's history in the labor movement.
So this year, I wanted to dig into the actual history behind the holiday. Here are four facts I found genuinely interesting, checked against the U.S. Department of Labor's own records and a few other reputable sources.
The First Labor Day Was Almost a Disaster
The very first Labor Day was held on a Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by the Central Labor Union. Reports at the time varied, but somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000 workers and their families marched from near City Hall up through Manhattan to Reservoir Park at 42nd Street, roughly where Bryant Park sits today. Afterward, most of the crowd headed further uptown to Elm Park for the real celebration: a picnic, speeches from labor leaders, and plenty of food and drink.
Oregon Started a Trend
Oregon was the first state to make Labor Day an official legal holiday, on February 21, 1887. By 1894, 23 more states had followed its lead, and that same year, Congress made it a national holiday, permanently set on the first Monday of September.
The Eight-Hour Workday Has a Very Specific Birthday
For most of the 19th century, a 12-hour day, seven days a week, was the norm for American workers. That began to change with the Adamson Act, signed into law in September 1916. It established an eight-hour workday for interstate railroad workers specifically, the first time the federal government had ever regulated hours for private-sector employees. It's widely regarded as one of the milestones that helped push the eight-hour day toward becoming the American standard we know today.
Where “No White After Labor Day” Actually Comes From
This one is more folklore than labor history, but it is a fun one. The rule is believed to trace back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, when wealthy families would return from their summer homes and swap their light, white summer clothing for a darker fall and winter wardrobe, a small ritual that also happened to signal status and separate longtime old money insiders from everyone else trying to keep up.
However you spend the holiday this year, I hope you get some real time with the people who matter most to you. It's the kind of day my own family has always taken seriously, and I hope yours does too.
Nuno T. Pereira, CTFA
President & Wealth Manager, Pereira Wealth Management
pereirawm.com · 877-997-7113 · nuno@pereirawm.com
Sources:
● U.S. Department of Labor, “History of Labor Day”
● U.S. Department of Labor, “Labor Daze: Pride, Chaos and Kegs on Labor's First 'Day'”
● Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Adamson Act”
● History.com, “What Are the Origins of the 'No White After Labor Day' Rule?”