Labor Day Facts You Might Not Have Known

America has celebrated Labor Day on the first Monday in September since 1882.  The original idea was to have a street parade to show off 'The strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations'.  Canada's first Labor Day happened about 10 years earlier.

In 1880 Americans typically worked 12-hour days, 7-days a week to eke out a decent living (can you imagine?).  Kids as young as 5 or 6 could work in factories.

Congress passed the Adamson Act in 1916, which established the 8-hour workday.

Traditionally people did not wear white or seersucker clothes after Labor Day as it unofficially marked the end of summer.

Teachers are the largest group of union workers nationwide.

California has a greater number of union workers than any other state  - 2.4 million.

For Labor Day, a website (SpareFoot) put together a list of the hardest-working cities in America, based on things like average work hours, commute times, and people with multiple jobs. Coming in at number one?  Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota!

Twin City residents don’t actually work the longest hours, but they’re close. The Twin Cities won because of how likely residents are to be part of dual-income families or to have more than one job.

Also, the share of the population that doesn’t work at all is small.