Labor Day, observed in the United States on the first Monday in September, is a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to our country. ASPPA Connect will not appear on Labor Day; however, following are some facts concerning the establishment of this holiday. ASPPA Connect will resume publication on Wednesday, Sept. 7.
- The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday on the same date one year later.
- In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the day on which Labor Day would be observed. One year later, Labor Day was celebrated in many U.S. industrial centers.
- Congress passed unanimously, and President Grover Cleveland (D) signed into law, a measure making Labor Day a national holiday in 1894.
- The law establishing Labor Day as a federal holiday was enacted just after the end of the Pullman Strike in spring 1894.
- September was chosen for the celebration of Labor Day, and not May 1 as in many other countries, in part to discourage Haymarket-style protests and not strengthen socialist and anarchist activity in the United States.
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