Talk:Labor Day/Archive 1

Los Angeles not in the South
Since when is Los Angeles a southern city? That sentence should be phrased differently.--71.52.145.142 (talk) 19:08, 28 July 2009 (UTC)

White clothes vs. black clothes
There's probably a better way to phrase this, but I fixed the statement that claimed white clothes are worse protection in the winter. Black absorbs more heat, but also radiates more heat. Black absorbs more heat in the summer, and indeed, white clothing provides better protection against the heat. But black also radiates more heat in the winter, and so white provides better protection against the cold (although grey is the best year-round for protection against mud and dirt ;) ). If you look at photos of clothing for extreme cold climates (think scientists in Antarctica), they will almost always be white for this reason. -Anonymous, October 2005

Labor Day imported from Canada
There is evidence that the US roots for this holiday started in Canada
 * That's weird, because this is a made-up holiday created by the federal government to deflect attention from May 1 in the United States. Labor day is the time to celebrate the contribution of our country's workers Of course, since the independence movement in the British colonies stemmed from the French and Indian War, it is true that the roots for his holiday started in Canada. -Acjelen 15:28, 5 September 2005 (UTC)
 * "A made-up holiday"... what, as opposed to naturally occurring holidays?
 * Yes. Obviously all holidays are "made up" and so don't have "roots". -Acjelen
 * Neither Canada nor the United States created Labor/Labour Day to deflect attention from May 1. May Day has been celebrated for millenia in Celtic culture as the first day of summer - including Celtic-American cultures.  When my mother was a girl in northern Michigan, they were still dancing around the May pole every 1 May.
 * May Day as a labour holiday originated in 1891, when it was formally adopted by the Internationale of 1891. But Canada was already celebrating Labour Day on the first Monday in September, starting in 1880.  The United States made Labor Day a federal holiday in 1887, using the same date as Canada, at the request of the Knights of Labor - so this was still before 1 May was adopted by the Internationale as International Worker's Day aka "May Day".  That said, President Cleveland was concerned about putting Labor Day on 1 May, in case it might be construed as a celebration of the Haymarket Riots of 4 May 1886 (six years after Canada started celebrating Labour Day).  That is why he supported the Knights of Labor proposal to use the Canadian date.


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the . Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section. 

don't move. &mdash; Nightst a  llion  (?) 11:30, 3 June 2006 (UTC)

Requested move
Labor Day (United States) → Labor Day … Rationale: "Labor Day" is a spelling exclusive to the United States, and the current name may be to avoid confusion with "Labour Day", but a dab on each page should be adequate. The requested name currently redirects to the actual name. … Please share your opinion at Talk:Labor Day (United States). Moulder 03:10, 30 May 2006 (UTC)

Support

 * 1) Moulder 03:12, 30 May 2006 (UTC)
 * 2) Jibbajabba 22:59, 30 May 2006 (UTC)

Oppose

 * 1) Acjelen 03:30, 30 May 2006 (UTC)
 * 2) Will&nbsp
 * 3) Reasonsjester 14:14, 21 July, 2008 (UTC)

Discussion
I would rather see the current set of article titles and redirects remain, mostly to keep the subject of this article explicit. This will protect against both well-meaning attempts at spelling correction and general polemicals. -Acjelen 03:30, 30 May 2006 (UTC)
 * Though I know all too well what you're referring to, having it at Labor Day (as opposed to a disambig of some sort for that and Labour Day) with a note at the top and in the definition itself, both indicating it's about the USA, should be explicit enough. Having it in the article title as a redirect from Labor Day is just hitting people over the head I think. Moulder 10:08, 30 May 2006 (UTC)

A goal of the Wikipedia project is to be globally relevant and to avoid local biases. Labo(u)r Days are celebrated in many nations (including mine, Australia) and to distinguish between a US and a UK spelling ignores the other nations with such holidays. Here both spellings are in common use and are generally interchangeable. I vote for no change. Will TALK  02:43, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
 * I always thought the labor spelling was a case of the US being the odd man out (Canada says labour), so I stand corrected. Still seems like overkill, although the redirect doesn't hurt anything I suppose. Perhaps we should have a disambig page - but then the natural question is, which spelling will that page use? ;) Moulder 03:38, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
 * Um. I think this is one of those problems with an international encyclopedia.  Many people in the United States are unfamiliar with May Day labor observances.  At the same time, I can only assume people outside of the U.S. are also ignorant of the unique American holiday.  While education is obviously one purpose of a project such as this, I don't think it should be jarring.  Perhaps see references at the top of all concerned articles would be sufficient. -Acjelen 04:17, 31 May 2006 (UTC)  At least we're not trying to split the article Biscuit. -Acjelen 04:19, 31 May 2006 (UTC)

Oppose because 1). the Labour/Labour distinction is a spelling rather than semantic difference (e.g., the Labour Party (UK) is called Labor Party (UK) in the USA) and 2). the spelling "Labor" is used in many areas outside the USA that learn American English including much of East Asia and Latin America where web access in English is significant (e.g., Philippines). AjaxSmack 07:26, 31 May 2006 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Knights of Labor and KKK connection deleted
Citing someone and his book, with "in his research," instead of specific page and quote, is not adequate sourcing. Plus, "the main reason...more progressive supporters...preferred" are POV and require citations. Also, the edit was poorly written (ambiguous). The parade or the Knights of Labor had a loose connection with KKK? &mdash; J M Rice 17:00, 4 September 2006 (UTC)

-- The Knights of Labor was one of the most inclusive organizations at that time and allowed both Blacks and Women as members. I would be surprised if the Knights of Labor had anything to do with the KKK.

Look at Wikipedia's own article about the Knights of Labor.
 * Zinn is hardly a random "someone." The "main reason..." presumably derives from the same source. Otherwise, all of the above is true and valid, but note what is said "The original parade ... had a loose affiliation with the Ku Klux Klan" not "The ... Knights of Labor had a loose affiliation with the Ku Klux Klan." Though it's true the Knights of Labor had black and female members, connections among the chapters were as loose as the organization itself. Another example, the fact there are black and female Baptists doesn't prevent racist Baptist churches arising. --74.227.121.198 14:19, 30 March 2007 (UTC)

why no white clothes after labor day?
Can someone tell me why some people say " you dont wear white after labor day" i have so far had some really silly answers with people being daft and all i want is a sensible answer.

Regards Louise.


 * I was surprised nothing was mentioned about this, I'm going to add it. Joshua4 03:34, 6 September 2006 (UTC)

It has to do with snow being white. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.165.8.142 (talk) 15:51, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

"..'dare' to wear white after Labor Day innovative, creative, and bold" What is that? Like 20 years ago maybe, that quote sounds like my grandma said it.

I believe this has to do with the fashion trends as influenced by the navy. Various navies wear white uniforms during the summer and black uniforms during the winter. Labor Day is an easy mark for the end of summer. It has to do with white shoes, pants, and jackets. It is appropriate to wear white shirts after labor day. The time from Memorial day until Labor day is generally, in America, seen as the summertime (despite summer technically being from the Solstice until the Equinox). —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pjn195 (talk • contribs) 16:53, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

Merge
Labor Day is a U.S. federal holiday that is not celebrated elsewhere in the world. While other countries have days to honor workers and call them "Labour Day", they are unrelated to the American holiday, with the exception of Canada (as the Labour Day there has the same time of year and shares some history with the American holiday). -Acjelen 12:24, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 * While I agree with your comment I then consider that articles should not be merged. Seperate articles for seperate holidays/events/historical background. Lincher 14:10, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

cool
this is great it helped me a lot with my hw thanks wikipedia thanks alot!

Controversy
No excuse for deleting much historical information on controversy over the selection of the date. --63.98.135.196 00:02, 10 March 2007 (UTC)


 * i would also like to know why that section was deleted. the traditions section as well. it doesn't look like any reasons were given - if no one has any, i'll add them back. --dan (talk) 16:47, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

SOmeone needs to delete the random homosexual reference
"These events are today commemorated as Labor Day was meant for homosexuals in virtually every country in the world, "

I am not a wikipedian, can someone edit this out? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.196.82.100 (talk) 18:25, August 29, 2007 (UTC)

LABOR DAY IS A NATIONAL HOLIDAY.IT ALL BEGAN IN —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.53.215.227 (talk) 01:37, 1 September 2007 (UTC)

Although Labor Day was first observed as a national holiday in the U.S. in 1894, the observation actually began in 1868  in San Francisco with what was the nation's first Labor Day parade. More than 3,000 union members marched through the city's downtown streets, led by shipyard workers and carpenters and men from dozens of other construction trades. The marchers called their parade a "jollification" -- the climax of a three-year campaign of strikes and other pressures that culminated in the establishment of the eight-hour workday as a legal right in California. New York unionists staged a similar parade in 1882 that is often erroneously cited as the first Labor Day parade, even though it occured 14 years after the march in San Francisco.

Honors for holding the official Labor Day are usually granted the state of Oregon, which proclaimed a Labor Day holiday in 1887 -- seven years before the Federal Government got around to proclaiming the holiday which is now observed nationwide. But Oregon's move came nearly a year after Gov. George Stoneman issued a proclamation setting May 11, 1886 as a legal holiday to honor a new organization of California unions -- the year-old Iron Trades Council. That, said renowned University of California labor historian Ira B. Cross, was "the first legalized Labor Day in the United States." -- Dick Meister

—Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.35.216.240 (talk) 03:23, 11 September 2009 (UTC)

template:first Monday in Sept
This was being used in the Current Dates section, and was not working. I looked at the template (which has no documentation) and couldn't figure out how to use it. I replaced the template call with actual dates. I would welcome someone restoring the original (which will allow us not to update this page periodically for new dates) by fixing either the template or its usage. --ubiquity 22:44, 2 September 2007 (UTC)
 * It was working until User:Thepulse2007 made this edit. I'm going to revert back to the functioning version. Nufy8 23:23, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

Please help - goofed edit
Sorry...I was editing the first section to remove some vandalism and somehow my username replaced the heading and the edit button is gone, so I can't figure out how to fix it. My bad!! Ettalynn 00:31, 5 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Fixed. When you're removing vandalism, the easiest thing to do is usually to revert to the previous version. An easy way to do THAT is simply to go to the history, edit the last version before the vandalism, and save without making changes. WP will warn you that this will wipe out subsequent changes, but in this case that's exactly what you want to do. --ubiquity 00:38, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

"working woman"
I cut the addition of "working woman" out of the opening sentences. The quote phrase "working man" is from 1882, and although clearly gender biased, I think it is appropriate as a reflection of its time. (Although a section on the history leading to women's due recognition by the holiday would be interesting reading.)--Bookandcoffee 19:36, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

The term "man" in this context is not referring to biological males. The term refers to people. In the English language it is proper grammar to use the masculine for unspecified gender. It is not meaning that women are not included. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pjn195 (talk • contribs) 16:56, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

"general strike... commemorated around the world"
"In 1886 came the general strike which eventually won the eight-hour workday in the United States. These events are today commemorated as Labor Day in virtually every country in the world, with the notable exceptions being the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand"

Is the 1886 general strike commemorated in virtually every country around the world as labor day? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.46.9.93 (talk) 16:35, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

No - this confused me too at first, but I don't think that's what the writer meant. I think they're referring back to the May timing of the celebrations usually seen elsewhere, but this would benefit from clearer wording. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.153.203.241 (talk) 12:34, 22 August 2008 (UTC)

text copied from DOL website
Parts of this article seem to come verbatim from a US Department of Labor web page. Does anyone know if federal government web pages are fair game for use like this (similar to photos from federal websites), or is there a plagiarism issue? Inhumandecency (talk) 22:10, 4 August 2008 (UTC)

incorrect assertion about date of Labor Day
The article currently reads "Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday in September in the United States since the 1880s." However, as most people my age (okay, I'm 54) who were paying attention in school know, Labor Day was never on September 1 before, because it was defined as "The Monday after the first Sunday in September". This has changed, fairly recently I think (but I can't find a specific reference); I'm not sure if the change was in connection with a Monday Holiday law, or with the revision of DST rules, but definitely within the past decade, recently enough that it has never affected the date of the holiday before, this has changed. Now, I don't know what the definition was in the 1880s, or in 1894 when apparently the holiday was formalized by Congress, but "Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday in September in the United States since the 1880s" is a simple error. See the calendar of the museum at Kent State for an example of a website that apparently preserves the old definition (though one wonders if they are actually observing it that day.) --Haruo (talk) 18:19, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

I have never tried to contribute to Wikipedia before, but the above paragraph by another user, is absolutely correct to me. I am age 48 and clearly remember the rule that Labor Day when growing up in Ohio was the first Monday AFTER THE FIRST SUNDAY. I was asking myself looking at the 2014 calendar (and I kind of remember this question a few years back) how on earth it will be on September 1 this year, because that should not be possible. I do not know whether it was observed differently by different states or whether a previous rule was lost or changed, but I KNOW it NEVER USED TO BE on the first Monday absolute. SOMETIME SOMETHING got changed and lost. Clearly it is easier to think of Labor Day as the first Monday, yet the Kent state calendar mentioned above is enough for me to know my memory is not faulty. I will have to leave it to someone with better research skills than I to find the truth. 63.240.233.252 (talk) 05:15, 11 March 2014 (UTC)RD, Orlando
 * Thanks for your note. Sometimes we do turn up new information based on someone who remembers things differently, so don't be afraid to contribute. At worst, your edit simply gets reverted. I don't remember it being the way you describe, but I'm Canadian and in my thirties so I don't have the same frame of reference. I looked online and couldn't find a source to back up the "first Monday after first Sunday" idea. I did find a source indicating that Labor Day 1980 was September 1: this odd Labor Day trivia page at the NOAA talking about Labor Day weather extremes. Another source is a transcript of a Labor Day speech given by Franklin D. Roosevelt, given on September 1, 1941. From these sources it seems that Labor Day has officially been the absolute first Monday since at least the second World War. It could be that it was celebrated locally on a different day, or celebrations postponed to coincide with school calendars (I seem to remember this) and if there's a source it might be worth mentioning in the article, but I couldn't find a source. Ivanvector (talk) 03:04, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

Citation Addition
I am new to this but, I found a reference to back up the statement needing a citation, "Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday in September in the United States since the 1880s". The reference is from the Library of Congress website so, I do not know if it counts. Because the page is semi-protected, I am not allowed to add the citation so I have included it below.

Any input on whether or not this is helpful would be appreciated.

Jtclements (talk) 18:33, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

i'm having a heckuva time navigating this site and can't find tabs to edit this article or open an account. this article on LABOR DAY is extremely incomplete. a fuller story is at :   http://www.tomchristopher.com/?op=home/Comic%20History/Labor%20Day%20and%20Labor-Related%20Comics    it's referenced  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 63.249.25.141 (talk) 00:22, 12 September 2008 (UTC)

This article should be deleted, and redirected to Labour Day
What is the point of this white-washed "labor day" article? Redirect this page to "Labour Day".

12.47.86.27 (talk) 06:50, 30 November 2008 (UTC)
 * It's spelled "Labor Day". It's an American holiday, thus an American spelling.  No silly extra U's for us. Also, international "Labour Day" is usually celebrated on May 1 and the American holiday is not. Vidor (talk) 16:48, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

Can someone please tell me why in this day and age where technology makes us get more things done during the day why we still have to work 8 hours a day? Monday-Friday 8 hours a day, we tend to loose precious moments of our life. Life is too short to keep working an 8 hour day. Everything you need to take care of is during a week day. If you have to work 8 hours the likely hood of doctor appointments, calling businesses to take care of personal matters has to be doe during work hours or you need to take a vacation day to take off and still be paid. It's just not fair and I think the average work hour needs to be shorter. Why not make 5 hours full time? Children need us now more than ever, and both parents need to work, so where are our values going? I seriously think the next President should take this up and make the change. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.33.26.191 (talk) 00:05, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

Please hyperlink Peter. J. McGuire to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_J._McGuire —Preceding unsigned comment added by 63.139.7.98 (talk) 19:24, 4 September 2009 (UTC)
 * ✅, Thank you. Have you considered creating an account?. If you did so, you could request the 'confirmed' permission and be able to edit semi-protected articles. Best regards, –xenotalk 19:26, 4 September 2009 (UTC)

I agree with 12.47.86.27. Why does the United States deserve it's own specific Labor Day article? The Labour Day article covers all the other countries, with both May 1st and the first Monday in September. Seeing as the holiday originated in Canada (I have no idea if this is true or not, but that's what the article states at the time of this writing), what specifically makes this an "American Holiday"? I don't feel that the American Labor Day is notable enough to merit it's own article separate of Labour Day. Psychiccheese (talk) 18:03, 7 September 2009 (UTC)
 * I second Psychiccheese's views. The Canadian and American days are historically and culturally linked, including the facts that they both happen on the first Monday of September and they are a time for barbequing, family, and football. I feel that there should only be a single article, but if people insist on having two articles for Labor Day, the Canadian article should be grouped with the American one in a "North American Labor Day" article. MattFromOntario (talk) 17:10, 5 September 2011 (UTC)

Originated in Canada?
Contrary to what is written in the article I find information that says Labor Day the September Holiday was originated in the US. See:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080830190048AAkEFZY

http://wilstar.com/holidays/laborday.htm

etc.

If the holiday originated in the US I think it is misleading to say "The holiday originated in Canada out of labor disputes" unless you are talking about the origin of an official holiday in Canada. I don't see any citation backing up the paragraph starting "The holiday originated in Canada..." and ending with "...September 5 of the same year." I'd be interested in seeing where that info came from. Since I don't edit will someone kindly look into this or clear up the information or at least give a citation for that paragraph? --Otumeal (talk) 23:32, 4 September 2009 (UTC)


 * I wouldn't be putting too much stock into Yahoo Answers or into a personal webpage. From this source (http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=ArchivedFeatures&Params=A218), which appears far more academic, it sounds like an annual union parade was held in Canada since 1872, and America directly adopted the parade in 1882. It wasn't until 1894 that both countries adopted it as an official holiday at the national level. It is unfortunate that the US Dept of Labor fails to mention the Canadian connection, as the annual festival was in full-swing in Canada after arrests were made and Parliamentary bills passed in 1872. MattFromOntario (talk) 17:02, 5 September 2011 (UTC)

Undocumented vs. Illegal
Why use the term undocumented workers in the last sentence of the article rather than illegal? These workers are in the United States working illegally as a matter of fact, despite anyone's opinion of the law or the level of support that is given to them by American companies or private parties. They are undocumented because of this. It appears that the undocumented adjective provides a level of bias in support of illegally migrating to and working in the country. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.59.20.247 (talk • contribs)

Start of NFL season
Article speaks of NFL as traditionally starting it's season on the Thursday after Labor Day; this is a relatively recent marketing idea and not the traditional start of the season, which is the first Sunday after Labor Day (September 12 in 2010). —Preceding unsigned comment added by JosephFinn (talk • contribs) 21:27, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Edit request from Pproanalyst, 6 September 2010
The reference to "nigger" in the page is offensive and not support by the fact of the Labor Day Holiday.

Thanks

Pproanalyst (talk) 03:34, 6 September 2010 (UTC)
 * ✔️ Vandalism already removed. --Stickee (talk)  03:58, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

Name
Why is it called Labor Day? Shouldn't it be Vacation Day or something? ~ Wikipedian19265478 (talk) 18:49, 6 September 2010 (UTC)
 * It is named Labor Day in honor of the social and economic achievements of the various laborers in the United States. The name is only fitting. -- Crazysane (T/C\D) 23:24, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

Incorrect date of "first" Labor Day
The article says, "The first Labor Day in the United States was observed on August 26, 1878, in Boston," and cites the US Dept of Labor site. That site says, "The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City." Am I missing something? 76.224.5.170 (talk) 16:02, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Inaccuracies in Labor Day origins
President Cleveland's role in making LD a national holiday has been grossly overstated

Many states already celebrated the LD holiday, most originating from union workers

Cleveland did not rush the Labor Day bill through congress. Congress passed the bill June 28, 1894 before the Pullman strike http://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm

Sen. James Kyle(SD)introduced the bill to Congress, again, before Pullman strike.Kyle was a congregationalist preacher who moved to SD and was added to ballot by independents then Democrats http://www.argusleader.com/article/20110831/VOICES/108310318/Labor-Day-started-South-Dakotan — Preceding unsigned comment added by Garymillrat (talk • contribs) 14:20, 5 September 2011 (UTC)


 * Actually, not true. The American Railway Union joined the ongoing Pullman Strike on June 21, so Congress passed the bill during the week after the ARU boycott of Pullman Cars was put into action. The implication that there was no connection between the strike (which divided organized labor) and the labor legislation -- in my opinion -- is a bit silly, when the national events were already occurring. Are we to assume that senators did not read the newspapers the day they voted, and that representatives had not read newspapers during the six days prior to their vote? Consider, Gompers and the American Federation of Labor were on the side of the employers and the government in regard to the strike participation (and according to some accounts, in regard to the very existence) of the ARU. While i don't have any information close at hand that proves a direct connection between the AFL's opposition to the ARU strike, and the passage of this legislation during the ARU strike, it seems entirely unreasonable to just assume there was no connection. Richard Myers (talk) 06:50, 10 September 2011 (UTC)

Reyes?
There is to my knowledge no Reyes involved in the history of Labor Day or the Pullman Strike. The leader Cleveland reconciled with would have been Samuel Gompers, although not much reconciliation would have been needed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.72.244.157 (talk) 22:36, 2 September 2012 (UTC)

The American Railway Union was led by Eugene V. Debs who was arrested and imprisoned for his involvement in the strike. The leader of the American Federation of Labor was Samuel Gompers who refused to support Debs and his boycott. Jcrohlfing (talk) 12:46, 3 September 2012 (UTC) 


 * This must be a reference to Isabelo Florentino De Los Reyes, "Father of Filipino Socialism", who formed the first labor union in the Phillipines. His wiki page says he was jailed in Spain for inciting labor strikes against American business firms, but nothing about him reconciling with Cleveland.  And he definitely was not the leader of the U.S. Labor Movement!  This may be vandalism. Air (talk) 16:56, 3 September 2012 (UTC)
 * The source listed doesn't mention Reyes, and I can find nothing online to back up this statement. I removed the sentance. Air (talk) 17:06, 3 September 2012 (UTC)

retail workers
15.3%, not 24%, according to planet money http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/03/20/149015363/what-america-does-for-work — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.15.13.103 (talk) 21:24, 3 September 2012 (UTC)

9 million out of 128 million is 7%. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.htm — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.30.118.59 (talk) 21:42, 3 September 2012 (UTC)

Alternative view really needed?
I removed this:

In 2012, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor sought to downplay the role of labor's importance and instead re-focus the intention of the holiday on job creators, saying via Twitter: “Today, we celebrate those who have taken a risk, worked hard, built a business and earned their own success.” 

I don't think that this adds anything to an article on Labor Day. In election years politicians use the holiday to make political points, and the points are rarely significant. Further how is this an "alternative"? Many do labor in their own or their family's business. A section would be needed if there were a movement that was opposed to Labor Day but I don't see such a movement. I am worried that in this election year, this section is inappropriate to an encyclopedia.

I removed it instead of editing it because it is a comment about a living person, particularly a candidate in an election year. I think that it is too political; some might see it as a dig. Some might see it as saying that Cantor is opposed to laborers and unions. Indeed I am not sure that he is trying to "re-focus", i.e. change the focus. Maybe he is just trying to be inclusive of all. --Bruce Hall (talk) 03:40, 4 September 2012 (UTC)

Why was Labor Day held, September 10th, 2001
Why was Labor Day held on September 10th, 2001, if Labor Day traditionally begins on the 1st Monday of September? That is why all of those people died on September 11th, when they were coming back from a long weekend to open the fall rush for that fateful year. Why was it scheduled for that day - Monday, September 10th.?
 * It wasn't. In 2001, Labor Day was Monday, September 3, the first Monday, as always. See http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/labor-day. Ivanvector (talk) 02:49, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 2 September 2014
Labor Day is a day of rest that commemorates years of war. Congress inaugurated the holiday just days after President Grover Cleveland sent 12,000 federal troops to break the Pullman strike. The tactics were bloody; U.S. deputy marshals killed two men, and wounded many more.

That was 1894, an election year. Cleveland needed a way to win workers back to his side. He saw an opportunity in a federal holiday honoring workers — as well as organized labor.

"The movement for a national Labor Day had been growing for some time," writes PBS Newshour. "In September 1892, union workers in New York City took an unpaid day off and marched around Union Square in support of the holiday. But now, protests against President Cleveland's harsh methods made the appeasement of the nation's workers a top political priority. In the immediate wake of the strike, legislation was rushed unanimously through both houses of Congress, and the bill arrived on President Cleveland's desk just six days after his troops had broken the Pullman strike."

78.96.65.160 (talk) 07:34, 2 September 2014 (UTC)

❌ - This contradicts the cited source, which states it was established in 1887, and you have not cited any sources to support your suggestion. - Arjayay (talk) 08:18, 2 September 2014 (UTC)

2100
I have removed the year 2100 from the table because according to the Gregorian calendar, it is not a leap year. Labor Day in 2100 is on September 6. GeoffreyT2000 (talk) 03:05, 4 June 2015 (UTC)

revise the chart
The chart at the end is confusing and not helpful. It speculates the day up to the year 2099. Furthermore, September 1 appears many places. All of the years where the date is September 1 should be in one place, as with September 2, etc. Sandra opposed to terrorism (talk) 21:26, 6 September 2015 (UTC)

Is someone going to fix the picture?
the picture is a ceiling fan! Please fix it!!! ConiMari98 (talk) 01:37, 8 September 2015 (UTC)
 * I removed it temporarily until someone at Commons can re-upload the correct image.  Calidum   01:50, 8 September 2015 (UTC)
 * I've repaired the image. —C.Fred (talk) 02:16, 8 September 2015 (UTC)
 * ...Had repaired it. Need to wait for admin action at Commons. —C.Fred (talk) 02:41, 8 September 2015 (UTC)
 * Holy ceiling fan Batman! What is up with all that image-changing over at Commons?  Maybe when an article gets FA on the Main Page the images could be protected too... Shearonink (talk) 03:16, 8 September 2015 (UTC)

Vice news article about this article


-- Green  C  15:11, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Confusing paragraph
The second paragraph is quite confusing. As it is now, it reads: "Labor Day was promoted by the Central Labor Union and the Knights of Labor, who organized the first parade in New York City. After the Haymarket Massacre in Chicago on May 4, 1886, U.S. President Grover Cleveland feared that commemorating Labor Day on May 1 could become an opportunity to commemorate the affair. Therefore, in 1887, the United States holiday was established in September to support the Labor Day that the Knights favored."

Was Labor Day established as being on May 1 in the US, before 1886? What is "the Labor Day that the Knights favored," just the different date?

--Betafisch (talk) 22:30, 11 September 2015 (UTC)
 * Agree. I tried some edits, moving some wording over from International Workers' Day.--Iloilo Wanderer (talk) 02:19, 14 September 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just added archive links to 1 one external link on Labor Day. Please take a moment to review my edit. If necessary, add after the link to keep me from modifying it. Alternatively, you can add to keep me off the page altogether. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/20110122090036/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/business/september96/labor_day_9-2.html to http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/business/september96/labor_day_9-2.html

When you have finished reviewing my changes, please set the checked parameter below to true to let others know.

Cheers.—cyberbot II  Talk to my owner :Online 04:21, 25 January 2016 (UTC)

Irrelevant Sports?
The section entitled Unofficial end of summer is mostly about the transition from summer to fall. Several illustrations are given, including that it's the start of football season (a fall sport), that it's no longer fashionable to wear white (a summer color), and that it often marks the beginning of the school year (which is usually suspended for the summer).

In the paragraph where sports are mentioned, the reference to football seems to be apropos, as it is a fall sport. However, the references to auto racing and tennis seem out of place, as the section is about reasons Labor Day marks the end of summer, not about all the sporting events or tournaments that occur on Labor Day.

I think that either the discussions of auto racing and tennis should: (a) be removed; (b) be brought into the scope of the section, if possible; or (c) be moved into a new section about sports or cultural events occurring on Labor Day or the Labor Day weekend and expanded. But I'd like to hear what others think before I'd consider making one of those changes. IrishCowboy (talk) 14:45, 2 September 2016 (UTC)

Early history
It seems to me that we need additional sources on the early history of Labor Day and International Workers' Day, since Wikipedia articles on this topic are neither clear nor consistent. Relevant pages: Just mentioning it in case someone wants to do some research. Sondra.kinsey (talk) 17:51, 1 September 2017 (UTC)
 * Labour Day
 * Labor Day
 * May Day riots of 1894
 * International Workers' Day
 * Talk:International Workers' Day/Archives/2017

The picture is a lamp.
The picture should be a parade. It's a lamp. Somebody who can edit should fix that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.232.58.186 (talk) 01:22, 8 September 2015 (UTC)


 * [[Image:Symbol confirmed.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] Resolved &thinsp;&mdash; Mr. Guye (talk) (contribs)&thinsp; 20:14, 4 September 2017 (UTC)

Rephrase for last sentence of first paragraph.
Change "The holiday is also a federal holiday." to "It is recognized as a federal holiday." Keep the hyper link for "federal holiday". 208.75.96.9 (talk) 02:28, 5 September 2017 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done — nihlus kryik   ( talk ) 06:04, 5 September 2017 (UTC)

I'd like to correct something I posted in an edit summary
The way ClueBot III was set up wasn't actually incorrect. I just now figured out I thought it wasn't working because the archiving was set up to go off about every 3 years (so I had thought it wasn't working because the timeframe was so long). My apologies for my mistake. Shearonink (talk) 07:23, 5 September 2017 (UTC)
 * Then why did you leave the archiving set to 30 days? And why did you not revert your changes, then?  30 days discourages discussion for low-volume talk pages.  Also, why is the "pack all comments in meaningless sequence number archives" approach better than year-based archiving?  -- DanielPenfield (talk) 11:29, 5 September 2017 (UTC)
 * I apologized above and I apologize again for my mistake re:the ClueBot III archiving nomenclature. I had initially thought auto-archiving wasn't working, because when I used the ClueBot III Archive box what I found linked there was User:ClueBot III/Master Detailed Indices/Talk:Labor Day and it was empty - I didn't realize that you had set the hours interval to be 1096 days. The Talk:Labor Day/Archive 1 had already been set up & it seemed to me that it might be best to continue with that nomenclature.  I have also realized that the reason there was no Archive box on this talk page for the already-present Archive 1 is also my fault & dates back to 2015 (All sorts of mistakes on my part to this page - ever have one of those days?  Anyway...)  I have changed the time-interval to 365 days - do you think that is long enough to satisfy your concerns about interval-length?  Let me know, let's discuss & mea culpa. Shearonink (talk) 15:14, 5 September 2017 (UTC)

Notes on "Collective Action" vs "Honoring the Worker"
This is a paragraph to justify the edit I just did to remove the narrative about Labor Day being to "honor the worker" etc. The TL;DR summary of where Labor Day comes from is: working conditions for laborers in the US were awful in the late 1800's (and probably before that, too). The working class organized through various unions, and there were peaceful demonstrations which spread across the country. The democratically elected leaders responded to this pressure by creating a holiday, eventually culminating with a federal holiday. However it was framed in the bill which officially created this, the holiday has always been about the power of collective action in a democratic society, which has given us things like the 40-hour work week and this holiday. Specifically it is not "look around at all the great things you've built, laborer! Pat yourself on the back." I'm sure this change in narrative needs a lot more citations - I found some interesting articles on the DOL site, but there is probably much more to be found in written literature and other sources.

Mugwumpjism (talk) 20:26, 30 August 2019 (UTC)

Pullman strike reference desirable?
Seems like this article ought to mention the Pullman Strike, which (according to that article and its sources) was the proximate cause of the US federal recognition of Labor Day. 73.92.193.211 (talk) 18:45, 2 September 2019 (UTC)