Labor Day’s violent beginnings

People of all ages, especially the poor and the recent immigrants, especially those with poor working conditions where we have insufficient fresh air, insufficient sanitary facilities, and breaks. As the manufacturing of agricultural products increased rapidly and the wild spread of employment, labor unions and other labor organizations grew up. The affected began to organize strikes and labor rallies to fight against poor working conditions and persuade employees to negotiate again about hours and pay. Organized rallies and demonstrations turned into violence during this period, an example being the infamous Haymarket Riot of 1886, where workers and Chicago police officers were killed. Many industries recognized the workingmen holiday, which was celebrated on the first Monday in September. On May 11, 1894, many Pullman Palace Car Company employees in Chicago went on a strike to protest poor wages and fairness in the union representation. On June 26, the Eugene V. Debs, led by American Railroad Union, resulted in the deaths of more workers. To attempt to repair ties with the American workers, Congress passed the act of making Labor Day a legal holiday in Columbia. In 1894 President Grover Cleveland sighed the law, and Labor Day is recognized to the date.

Labor Day was created by the labor movement to symbolize the end of summer for many Americans and is celebrated all over. It marked the end of poor working conditions and wages used to be paid to the employees of that time, which sounded unfair to them compared to the work they used to do. Its annually celebrated to celebrate workers ' achievements, which the American Labor Body organized. In the united states average American used to work twelve hours in a day for a whole week in order to earn a living, while children as young as five to six years toiled in mills, mines, and factors under meager wages, which called for a Labor Day to end such harassments. After great fights and strikes, all this came to an end, and annually celebrate Labor Day to celebrate the end of such harassment.

References

Schaap, Howard. “Labor Day, the Side-Eye Holiday.” (2019).

Haverty-Stacke, Donna T. “Labor Day and the American Working Class.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. 2020.