Why Labor Day is a Worker's Holiday

Labor Day weekend is quickly approaching! It’s an annual long weekend that earmarks the end of summer, back to school in many areas, and the start of regularly scheduled fall activities.   This national holiday is celebrated in the United States and Canada on the first Monday of September and it began for a much deeper reason than we celebrate today. It is a workers’ holiday. During the late 19th century in the United States, trade unionists proposed a day to celebrate labor with the first parade happening in New York City. Oregon was first state to adopt Labor Day as an official public holiday in 1887 and, over the next seven years, a total of thirty states would do the same. It was in 1894 that Labor Day became a federal holiday to honor the American Labor Movement and worker contributions to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the nation. Though similar, Canada's Labour Day had a more dramatic start. It became an official statutory holiday in 1884, but began with a massive strike eight years earlier. Though strikes were illegal in 1872, 2,000 workers marched through Toronto streets to government buildings at Queens Park, arriving with 8,000 supporters. Their primary objective was to get shorter work days – down to nine hours. Though that initial attempt was unsuccessful and many lost their job, the 'Nine-Hour Movement' spread to cities across Canada and eventually resulted in a shorter work week. After that, annual celebrations with parades took place in cities across Canada to commemorate employees and their solidarity. As you enter the long weekend, and Labor Day on September 5th, I hope that you enjoy work-free fun with family and friends.       Your Flooring Consultant For Life,            Matt Capell            President of Capell Flooring and Interiors P.S.  End the headache of shopping for new floors with our FREE Design Audit!™  The Design Audit™ is a diagnostic tool that allows my expert floor consultants help you choose the right floor for your decorating taste and lifestyle.  They’ll walk you through a series of questions that will help narrow down the thousands of options to the two or three that exactly match your unique situation.  They’ll also give you a written, customized “maintenance” plan with their professional recommendations for getting the longest life and beauty out of your floor.  Call or visit us today for your FREE Design Audit!™