I write this on Labor Day, 2026. Labor Day is not like many of our three-day-weekend holidays, in that its not necessarily a day for deep reflection or remembrance; it's more of a workingman's freebie. The designation of the first Monday in September as Labor Day goes back to 1887, when Oregon became the first state to set a Labor Day holiday into law; by 1894, 30 states had joined in, and it was in that year that the United States Congress passed a bill making the first Monday in September an official federal holiday. President Grover Cleveland signed that bill into law in June, making that first Monday in September in 1894 the first nationwide Labor Day holiday. Now every state, as well as the District of Columbia and U.S. territories, recognizes this workingman's holiday.
Some of our three-day-weekend holidays have a serious purpose; Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and even Presidents' Day are cause for some reflection. On those days, we recognize and acknowledge (at least, we should) our history, those who fell serving the nation, those who served and bore scars, mental and physical, and our national history.
Labor Day, though, is a little different. Its a free day for those who work. Whether one works at a desk, in a laboratory, on an assembly line, or running a jackhammer, its our day. Its also the day when we recognize the people who work, who keep our economy afloat, who produce, who create value.
My father had some very specific attitudes toward work and a man's role in the workplace, attitudes which he passed on to me when I was very young. Dad was a farmer, a quality engineer for a major manufacturer, and an artist of some renown who for years had his own space in the Iowa State Capitol where one of his paintings always was on display. More important, he was a good husband, a wonderful father and grandfather, an old-fashioned country gentleman, one of the finest wing shots I’ve ever seen, a self-educated man conversant in subjects from particle physics to paleoanthropology to the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. He had several tidbits which he repeated, often, to his kids, then to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren:
Work comes first. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. A man takes care of his family first, then himself. There are no lousy jobs, just lousy people.
That's the American work ethic, in a nutshell. I have, myself, cooked up some similar tidbits, which I have passed on to more than a few young people, tips on how to succeed in the workplace:
Show up a little earlier than the other guys. Work a
little harder than the other guys.
If asked to take on a task, always say "yes."
Never pass up the chance to learn something new.
These are the values that we celebrate today. The people who represent those values are the people this day is for.
This day is for the people who produce the energy that runs our economy, from oil-field workers and coal miners to the pipeline workers, the truckers, the railroaders and the refinery workers who extract, refine and transport gas, oil and coal, without which our economy would crash.
This is the day for the people who build our homes, from the loggers to the timber mill workers to the truckers (again) who move the lumber. Its a day for the carpenters, the plumbers, the electricians, every specialist and tradesman who is involved in taking a piece of empty land and building a home for an American family.
This is the day for the people who build our cars and trucks, who extract and refine the metal, who produce the plastics, who work in the assembly lines and in the design centers, to make American vehicles that are marvels of engineering.
This is the day for the people who move our goods across the nation, the truckers who are the lifeblood of our economy, the men and women who shepherd the big 18-wheelers, a distinctly American job that keeps everything we do supplied and equipped.
This is the day for every person behind every gas station and grocery store counter. It's for the server who brings us our food when we eat in a restaurant, and for the cooks who prepare that food. Its the day for people who program software for the millions of purposes that software is now used for, embedded in almost everything we use. It's the day for the people who sit at their desks, crunching numbers, figuring out how to make payroll while sinking some money back into their small business, and often as not, paying themselves less than they pay their employees.
This is the day for people who work, who produce value, who contribute to our national economy. We only get one day, mind you, while other, more PC interest groups get a month, but that's OK - we're busy. Working.
So, on this Labor Day, enjoy the downtime. Grill some steaks. Pop open a cold tall can or two. It's our day. Take the time. Work will still be there tomorrow.
