Labor Day is a holiday honoring working men and woman. It is celebrated in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Originally Labor Day was a day where blue collar workers show support for organized labor. Today it is simply a day of rest for anyone who works.

Most people on Labor Day simply take the day off. Picnics and backyard barbecues are common. Occurring near the end of summer, Labor Day is considered the end of the summer vacation season. Most schools end their summer breaks around Labor Day. Some people take advantage of the long weekend to take one last summer vacation. In the US, Labor Day traditionally marks the beginning of the political campaign season for November elections.

The idea of a holiday for labor is generally credited to two men: Peter McGuire, and Mathew Maguire. Both were active in the American organized labor movement in the late 1800s. In 1882, the first Labor Day Parade was held in New York to show support for the holiday. There were 20,000 participants. In 1887, Oregon became the first state to make Labor Day a holiday. In 1894, President Grover Cleveland made Labor Day a federal holiday in the US.

In 1872, the labor parades took place in both Toronto, and Ottawa to protest Canadian laws which made unions illegal. Those laws were shortly changed. In 1894, Parliament enacted legislation making Labor Day a national holiday in Canada.

Note: This holiday is one of Calendar Mine's over 500 built-in observances.

See Also

Holiday Catalogue

American (USA) Observances