Happy Labor Day; Now Get to Work

Probably you've noticed; the less you get paid, the more likely you'll have to work on Labor Day. "Wait!" you might say. "Isn't Labor Day supposed to be the day to honor the little guys at the bottom of the rung? It's crazy that they work on their own special holiday."

Indeed. Many things are crazy about Labor Day. For one, it should be celebrated on May 1, International Workers Day. However, that pesky Pullman incident took place in early May.

For background, George Pullman built railroad cars. He hired non-union workers and built a 'model community,' where the workers rented housing from him. When the railroad's demand for Pullman cars dropped, Pullman cut workers' pay, but not the rent. Riots and strikes resulted, affecting much of the country. 30 strikers were killed.

Immediately after the Pullman strike, Congress unanimously voted for a holiday to honor labor, naming early September... a nice, long time away from early May. No surprise there, except maybe that 100% of Congress could agree on anything. That's something we don't see much of these days.

Regardless of why, Labor Day is ideally positioned to be the official end of summer. Very convenient. It's a clear signal to stop wearing white and seersucker (ask your grandma). It's the last chance for families with schoolkids to have a getaway together. It gives us oldsters a 'start date' to schedule vacations when there aren't pesky kids everywhere.

But mainly, Labor Day is at exactly the right time for the back-to-school retailers to unload everything so they can make room for the 'Halloween Thanksgiving Christmas' trifecta. Yep, every holiday is exploited as a retail opportunity, and this one is no exception.

It's actually doubly ironic. Retail is the first, last, and only chance for a paycheck for millions of workers. A holiday to stimulate sales is a good thing for people who want to stay employed. So what if they don't get their own holiday off? They're used to it, and holidays are only arbitrary anyhow.

There are a lot of outrageous things going on, so one must choose one's battles. The integrity of Labor Day wouldn't even make my long list. Some workers still get the day off, there are some decent celebrations going on, and we all take at least a moment to think positive thoughts of America's labor force.

So Happy Labor Day to all! Now quit reading and get to work. You wouldn't want to be late.