by Vicki Brown

Created on: September 01, 2008

It is called Labor Day. Labor means work. But, we do think of it as the last weekend of summer. Most schools start before Labor Day so summer ends for them and their families before Labor Day.

Plus, people who truly labor for a living should have a day set aside to honor that work. We've shifted from a manufacturing economy to a service economy. But, we still rely on a lot of people who work so we can have good lives.

I'm thinking of people like electric company workers who keep the power flowing and turn it back on after a storm. And also those who work for the gas company or the water company. Then there are the guys who pick up the trash. They definitely should be recognized for the job they do.

And what about those who do work on an assembly line. Don't they deserve recognition and appreciation? And there are nurses and nurses aids and doctors and EMTs who work 24/7 all year long as well as policeman and firefighters.

The two really aren't mutually exclusive. We can honor those who labor we depend on and also celebrate the end of summer. Labor Day has always, in my experience, been a low-key holiday. No parades, no big parties, and the actual day was always devoted to getting ready for school.

So how have we been honoring workers? I mean on Memorial Day people lay wreaths at loved ones graves. The president puts one at the Tomb of the Unknowns. There are parades and community picnics. The 4th of July has all kinds of celebrations associated with it.

There are days that aren't officially holidays and yet we celebrate them or commemorate them more than we do Labor Day. For instance, the anniversary of D-day or Pearl Harbor Day. We at least take a moment to remember those who lost their lives protecting our freedom.

I'm seeing a pattern forming. I think the meaning of Labor Day has been lost because it is the end of summer. We've become so distanced from the days of the labor movement that it's just a name. How did we used to celebrate Labor Day? How did it get started?

I'll have to look in to that but I still think we should set aside a day to honor those who labor now and in the past. The hard working laborers who built this country. My grandfathers were laborers. One worked in the steel mills in Pittsburgh and the other was an electrician for the Pennsylvania Railroad. It was people like my grandfathers who built bridges and highways and train tracks and the entire infrastructure that gets us from one place to the other.

There is no reason why we can't honor workers and celebrate the end of summer together. We just have to remember the Labor Day part and mark it in some way.

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