Where Does "Labor Day" Come From?

[georgephillip]

Labor Day is a day we set aside once every year to honor all of those who have ever been in Labor, or who plan to someday be in Labor. It's the least we can do for our ladies. For those that show an interest, we assist them with planning out a day to come into Labor on this day. Then we act accordingly.

That dog is obviously too damn smart for his own good.

 

[xotoxi]

Fuck Labor.

We need Entrepreneurs Day instead.

There would be no entrepreneurs without laborers.

 

[Trajan]

The question I was trying to ask is which side of the class war in America would include most small business owners and hourly workers?

If you contrast the richest 10,000 Americans (0.01%) whose average annual income is $50,000,000 with most entrepreneurs and all hourly workers, the small business owner would seem to have more in common with labor than with Wall Street.

The richest 0.01% also "have $350,000,000 in assets and, since 1978, that is an increase of 550% - how have you done the past 30 years?"

America is 234...

why would you classify this along class lines?

There are a couple of reasons I tend to trust a class explanation for wealth distribution in this country. The first is anecdotal. I spent most of my working life existing on minimum and near-minimum wage jobs.

Forty years ago a single minimum wage job paid enough to cover the rent on a brand new one bedroom apartment where I was living with enough left over to survive another 30 days.

Today one minimum wage job would not be enough to cover rent in a similar apartment. I don't think it's a coincidence the richest of the rich earned around $3 million/year in 1970 and they earn upwards of $50 million today.

I don't believe there were any natural market forces responsible for that transfer of wealth. I think it's far more likely that in the last 40 years Republicans AND Democrats have increasingly turned to the richest 1% of this country to fund their campaigns, and the politicians have reciprocated with fiscal policy designed to help their benefactors.

Finally, I pay a lot of attention to what Noam Chomsky has to say on this issue:

"The war against working people should be understood to be a real war…. Specifically in the U.S., which happens to have a highly class-conscious business class…. And they have long seen themselves as fighting a bitter class war, except they don’t want anybody else to know about it.” (Full Report:)

Some of the rich can not stealing other people's money for the same reason a shark can't stop swimming.

They will die.

And they know it.

there are several reasons why $100.00 could take a family of 4 on a decent weekend vacation in 1965, yet would barely cover the cost of 2 rooms today. Concentration of wealth or evil businessmen is not among them.

Their is no infinite pool or supply of money. Just becasue they have it doesn't mean you cannot.

You can with the concomitant; motivation, education, ambition and a talent become rich too.

That Alinsky, oops, Chomsky quote is poppycock.

 

[Charles_Main]

From the struggle workers wage against those (capitalists) who confuse labor with slavery.

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike." (Labor Day - Wiki)

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's labor's struggle against capital that produced the American standard of living and the holiday it celebrates.

You are an complete and utter fool. Labor day has NOTHING TO DO with organized labor.

IT was started as a time to celebrate our Labors in the Fields. Which is why it falls around HARVEST TIME.

You fucking lefties will try and claim anything wont you Labor day was Always about Farming you fucking retard.

It is only today that lefties try and say it is about celebrating Labor Unions. You fools do realize less than 25% of American workers are members of a union right?

what next? Next memorial day are we going to hear from you how memorial day is about remembering Great anti War activists and no longer about remembering the fallen soldiers?

lol

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's a mixture of Capitalism and government regulation, but without Capitalism we'd have no where near the standing in the world we have today.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Fuck Labor.

We need Entrepreneurs Day instead.

Yeah, fuck workers!

They're just useless parasites who suck down all Mr. Businessmans' profits for no good reason.

Without Mr. Business Man's profits, there would be no workers and without workers, Mr. Business Man would have no profits. It needs to be a fair give and take relationship on both ends. Sometimes the unions over reach and sometimes the corporate fat cats swindle and abuse.

 

[georgephillip]

The classical economists who divided the factors of production into only land, labor, and capital also believed that labor creates all value.

Abraham Lincoln probably put it best: "Labor is prior to and independent of capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration."

 

[georgephillip]

From the struggle workers wage against those (capitalists) who confuse labor with slavery.

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike." (Labor Day - Wiki)

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's labor's struggle against capital that produced the American standard of living and the holiday it celebrates.

You are an complete and utter fool. Labor day has NOTHING TO DO with organized labor.

IT was started as a time to celebrate our Labors in the Fields. Which is why it falls around HARVEST TIME.

You fucking lefties will try and claim anything wont you Labor day was Always about Farming you fucking retard.

It is only today that lefties try and say it is about celebrating Labor Unions. You fools do realize less than 25% of American workers are members of a union right?

what next? Next memorial day are we going to hear from you how memorial day is about remembering Great anti War activists and no longer about remembering the fallen soldiers?

lol

You're confusing Labor Day with Halloween.

Try to read this without reaching for a hoe:

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike.[2]

"The September date originally chosen by the CLU of NY and observed by many of the nation's trade unions for the past several years was selected rather than the more widespread International Workers' Day because Cleveland was concerned that observance of the latter would stir up negative emotions linked to the Haymarket Affair, for which it had been observed to commemorate.[3] All 50 U.S. states have made Labor Day a state holiday."

In case you fucking righties are still looking around for pumpkins:

"The form for the celebration of Labor Day was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday: A street parade to exhibit to the public 'the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations,' followed by a festival for the workers and their families. (Labor Day - Wiki)

"This became the pattern for Labor Day celebrations.

"Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civil significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement"

Your idea for Memorial Day is surprisingly good.

In addition to celebrating authentic patriots like Martin Luther King (as opposed to the Gipper) we could also include soldiers who refused to follow illegal orders like Capt. Yolanda Huet, MD, who was sentenced to 30 months in prison for "refusing orders to be an accomplice in what I consider an immoral, inhumane and unconstitutional act, namely an offensive military mobilization in the Middle East."

Never know.
It might catch on, and the rich would have to send their children to war.

 

[georgephillip]

why would you classify this along class lines?

There are a couple of reasons I tend to trust a class explanation for wealth distribution in this country. The first is anecdotal. I spent most of my working life existing on minimum and near-minimum wage jobs.

Forty years ago a single minimum wage job paid enough to cover the rent on a brand new one bedroom apartment where I was living with enough left over to survive another 30 days.

Today one minimum wage job would not be enough to cover rent in a similar apartment. I don't think it's a coincidence the richest of the rich earned around $3 million/year in 1970 and they earn upwards of $50 million today.

I don't believe there were any natural market forces responsible for that transfer of wealth. I think it's far more likely that in the last 40 years Republicans AND Democrats have increasingly turned to the richest 1% of this country to fund their campaigns, and the politicians have reciprocated with fiscal policy designed to help their benefactors.

Finally, I pay a lot of attention to what Noam Chomsky has to say on this issue:

"The war against working people should be understood to be a real war…. Specifically in the U.S., which happens to have a highly class-conscious business class…. And they have long seen themselves as fighting a bitter class war, except they don’t want anybody else to know about it.” (Full Report:)

Some of the rich can not stealing other people's money for the same reason a shark can't stop swimming.

They will die.

And they know it.

there are several reasons why $100.00 could take a family of 4 on a decent weekend vacation in 1965, yet would barely cover the cost of 2 rooms today. Concentration of wealth or evil businessmen is not among them.

Their is no infinite pool or supply of money. Just becasue they have it doesn't mean you cannot.

You can with the concomitant; motivation, education, ambition and a talent become rich too.

That Alinsky, oops, Chomsky quote is poppycock.

If money is a commodity in the sense it can be owned by only one person or another, the hedge fund honcho "earning" a billion dollars in one year is concentrating the wealth of 20,000 public school teachers.

That sounds evil to me.

 

[georgephillip]

"We want eight hours and nothing less. We have been accused of being selfish, and it has been said that we will want more; that last year we got an advance of ten cents and now we want more. We do want more.

"You will find that a man generally wants more. Go and ask a tramp what he wants, and if he doesn’t want a drink he will want a good, square meal.

"You ask a workingman, who is getting two dollars a day, and he will say that he wants ten cents more. Ask a man who gets five dollars a day and he will want fifty cents more.

"The man who receives five thousand dollars a year wants six thousand a year, and the man who owns eight or nine hundred thousand dollars will want a hundred thousand dollars more to make it a million, while the man who has his millions will want everything he can lay his hands on and then raise his voice against the poor devil who wants ten cents more a day.

"We live in the latter part of the nineteenth century.

"In the age of electricity and steam that has produced wealth a hundred fold, we insist that it has been brought about by the intelligence and energy of the workingmen, and while we find that it is now easier to produce it is harder to live.

"We do want more, and when it becomes more, we shall still want more. And we shall never cease to demand more until we have received the results of our labor.

Samuel Gompers, Address to workers, Louisville, KY 1890

Labor in America

 

[blastoff]

I think it's a good idea to set aside a day to celebrate union leaders stealing, squandering, and otherwise spending the rank and file's hard earned dues dollars on things that don't benefit them. Keep giving your bucks to the fat cat union bosses. They've got expensive lifestyles that need supporting.

Is the minimum wage something you support?

How about an eight hour work day?

It isn't possible either would have come into existence without unions.

Never hired anyone I deemed only worthy of earning a minimum wage. Always hired go-getters who understood the scope of their job, their responsibilities and accountability for accomplishing it, and compensated them well for it. Minimum wage is for clock-watchers, slackers, and others only interested in collecting a paycheck.

Often 8+ hours was the norm. Other times though when the work was done the staff was too, but they got paid the same. Always thought busy work was demeaning so never made it part of their day.

 

[California Girl]

From the struggle workers wage against those (capitalists) who confuse labor with slavery.

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike." (Labor Day - Wiki)

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's labor's struggle against capital that produced the American standard of living and the holiday it celebrates.

Thank you, Mr State the Fucking Obvious.

 

[bodecea]

From the struggle workers wage against those (capitalists) who confuse labor with slavery.

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike." (Labor Day - Wiki)

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's labor's struggle against capital that produced the American standard of living and the holiday it celebrates.

You are an complete and utter fool. Labor day has NOTHING TO DO with organized labor.

IT was started as a time to celebrate our Labors in the Fields. Which is why it falls around HARVEST TIME.

You fucking lefties will try and claim anything wont you Labor day was Always about Farming you fucking retard.

It is only today that lefties try and say it is about celebrating Labor Unions. You fools do realize less than 25% of American workers are members of a union right?

what next? Next memorial day are we going to hear from you how memorial day is about remembering Great anti War activists and no longer about remembering the fallen soldiers?

lol

Um, no. You are incorrect. But feel free to prove that Labor Day is about farmers.

 

[georgephillip]

I think it's a good idea to set aside a day to celebrate union leaders stealing, squandering, and otherwise spending the rank and file's hard earned dues dollars on things that don't benefit them. Keep giving your bucks to the fat cat union bosses. They've got expensive lifestyles that need supporting.

Is the minimum wage something you support?

How about an eight hour work day?

It isn't possible either would have come into existence without unions.

Never hired anyone I deemed only worthy of earning a minimum wage. Always hired go-getters who understood the scope of their job, their responsibilities and accountability for accomplishing it, and compensated them well for it. Minimum wage is for clock-watchers, slackers, and others only interested in collecting a paycheck.

Often 8+ hours was the norm. Other times though when the work was done the staff was too, but they got paid the same. Always thought busy work was demeaning so never made it part of their day.

Unions also helped to make universal public education a reality while leading the fight to exterminate child labor.

Do you think it's a coincidence that as organized labor's political influence has waned, the gap between the richest 1% of Americans and the middle class has widened?

 

[midcan5]

Thumbs up for all who bought and buy American made.

Ideas can be powerful things, and when used for the good can result in good.

Ideas have power and if the idea that buying American, buying in stores that pay fairly is a good thing, and looking at where things are made becomes a way of thinking, then we have accomplished a big thing. There is no need for tariffs and other regulatory complications, all that is necessary is that America makes products that are reasonably priced, and Americans buy them even when the cost is slightly higher than the import. That seems simple, but isn't simple when the very workers who create many of these goods, in Unions particularly, are seen in a negative light.

Instead of whining about America as the Tea party does, why not push the idea that buying and supporting one of the foundations of our current lifestyle, Unions and 'made in America,' is still needed today, get out there and spread around ideas that praise the American worker and do not blame unions or fair wages. How to do that, speak to friends, local media, national media, and write our representatives. Shop where they pay fairly, and look at labels. And support representatives that support all Americans. Thumbs up.


Out Sourcing America: Job Loss and Unemployment

 

[Conspiracist]

Fuck Labor.

We need Entrepreneurs Day instead.

WTF man? You make it seem as if blue collar workers have no ingenuity. A good blue collar workforce helps keep the ship running smooth, but of course the investors don't see it that way.

 

[Conspiracist]

Thumbs up for all who bought and buy American made.

Ideas can be powerful things, and when used for the good can result in good.

Ideas have power and if the idea that buying American, buying in stores that pay fairly is a good thing, and looking at where things are made becomes a way of thinking, then we have accomplished a big thing. There is no need for tariffs and other regulatory complications, all that is necessary is that America makes products that are reasonably priced, and Americans buy them even when the cost is slightly higher than the import. That seems simple, but isn't simple when the very workers who create many of these goods, in Unions particularly, are seen in a negative light.

Instead of whining about America as the Tea party does, why not push the idea that buying and supporting one of the foundations of our current lifestyle, Unions and 'made in America,' is still needed today, get out there and spread around ideas that praise the American worker and do not blame unions or fair wages. How to do that, speak to friends, local media, national media, and write our representatives. Shop where they pay fairly, and look at labels. And support representatives that support all Americans. Thumbs up.


Out Sourcing America: Job Loss and Unemployment

Mid, buying American at this point is like sticking a finger in a dam after it has ruptured already.

 

[Trajan]

There are a couple of reasons I tend to trust a class explanation for wealth distribution in this country. The first is anecdotal. I spent most of my working life existing on minimum and near-minimum wage jobs.

Forty years ago a single minimum wage job paid enough to cover the rent on a brand new one bedroom apartment where I was living with enough left over to survive another 30 days.

Today one minimum wage job would not be enough to cover rent in a similar apartment. I don't think it's a coincidence the richest of the rich earned around $3 million/year in 1970 and they earn upwards of $50 million today.

I don't believe there were any natural market forces responsible for that transfer of wealth. I think it's far more likely that in the last 40 years Republicans AND Democrats have increasingly turned to the richest 1% of this country to fund their campaigns, and the politicians have reciprocated with fiscal policy designed to help their benefactors.

Finally, I pay a lot of attention to what Noam Chomsky has to say on this issue:

"The war against working people should be understood to be a real war…. Specifically in the U.S., which happens to have a highly class-conscious business class…. And they have long seen themselves as fighting a bitter class war, except they don’t want anybody else to know about it.” (Full Report:)

Some of the rich can not stealing other people's money for the same reason a shark can't stop swimming.

They will die.

And they know it.

there are several reasons why $100.00 could take a family of 4 on a decent weekend vacation in 1965, yet would barely cover the cost of 2 rooms today. Concentration of wealth or evil businessmen is not among them.

Their is no infinite pool or supply of money. Just becasue they have it doesn't mean you cannot.

You can with the concomitant; motivation, education, ambition and a talent become rich too.

That Alinsky, oops, Chomsky quote is poppycock.

If money is a commodity in the sense it can be owned by only one person or another, the hedge fund honcho "earning" a billion dollars in one year is concentrating the wealth of 20,000 public school teachers.

That sounds evil to me.

Again, the wealth in the hands of one or a dozen or 100 million, does not remove or make unavailable or make 'it', 'Money', 'wealth' unattainable to any individual whom wishes to avail themselves of it by employing the measures I described.

You choose to see evil because Gates or Buffet have billions? Again, so what? That is "evil"? hummmmm, why does it bother you?

 

[georgephillip]

From the struggle workers wage against those (capitalists) who confuse labor with slavery.

"The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on September 5, 1882 in New York City, by the Central Labor Union of New York, the nation's first integrated major trade union.[1]

"It became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority.

"Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike." (Labor Day - Wiki)

Nothing could be further from the truth than saying capitalism has given US workers the highest standard of living in the world.

It's labor's struggle against capital that produced the American standard of living and the holiday it celebrates.

Thank you, Mr State the Fucking Obvious.

Mother Jones to striking West Virginia coal miners circa 8/15/1912:

"Go into our factories, see how the conditions are there, see how women are ground up for the merciless money pirates, see how many of the poor wretches go to work with crippled bodies.

"I talked with a mother who had her small children working. She said to me, 'Mother, they are not of age, but I had to say they were; I had to tell them they were of age so they could get a chance to help me to get something to eat.'

"She said after they were there for a little while, 'I have saved $40, the first I ever saw. I put that into a cow and we had some milk for the little ones.'

"In all the years her husband had put in the earth digging out wealth, he never got a glimpse of $40 until he had to take his infant boys, that ought to go to school, and sacrifice them.

"If there was no other reason that should stimulate every man and woman to fight this damnable system of commercial pirates. That alone should do it, my friends."

Labor in AmericaLabor in America: Those were the Days Ramona's Voices