Labor Day and Beyond

Labor Day is the traditional end to summer.  Kids are heading back to school, summer homes are being closed up, and there’s one last festive family picnic before fall settles in.

However, let's not forget what Labor Day is really about – the achievements of American labor.

My dad was a union organizer in the textile mills in Massachusetts during the 1930's.  Unions were desperately needed then.  People worked long hours for little money.  There was no job security.  Management held all the strings.

The unions came in – often after very bitter and sometimes even violent disputes – and the entire American work landscape was transformed. 

Much has changed in our country since then.  There have undeniably been excesses, misuses, and corruption of union power from time to time that has sullied the reputation of unions.  Without a doubt condemnable.

But whether we are pro-union or anti-union, we still reap the benefits of the heroic efforts of those early pioneers – the men and women  who struggled and sacrificed to bring about equitable wages, safe working conditions, collective  bargaining, labor laws, and all of the benefits we take for granted today.

And for me, there is a spiritual aspect to all of this.  The Bible states that “…the labourer is worthy of his hire.”  That sense of justice, the ability to receive a fair wage for a fair day’s work, and the desire for a better life that embraces all members of our society has at its core a divine spark, if you will.  A spark that ignites a flame of progress for all humanity.

A progress that blesses all.