Thursday, September 3, 2009.
Thinking About Labor Day…The Labor Day weekend is always one of the last signs that our summer is about to come to a close. But before we say good-bye to those backyard BBQ’s and family vacations, we relish the extra holiday as one last opportunity to soak up the sun, spend a day on the beach, or get together with family and celebrate some time together before the kids are back in school and the extra-curricular commitments of life takeover our daily schedules.
Unfortunately, we sometimes forget why Labor day was was originally created. Check out the Department of Labor website and you will see clearly spelled out that “Labor Day was a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.” There’s also some interesting background on the creation of Labor Day, which has been around for more than 100 years.
Which brings us to this point. Despite the recent economic challenges our nation has endured, this Labor Day should be a major reminder to local policymakers that it is even more important than ever to get New England’s residents who have lost their jobs off the unemployment line. Our local policymakers need to do everything possible to encourage investment from businesses in this community and make our environment more attractive for other companies to come to the region. We need to find new incentives that will help bring new business to New England and help keep the doors open of those businesses that already exist here. Labor Day should be about celebrating the jobs we have and the hard work our residents put into them each day. When the nation is experiencing some of the highest unemployment rates in decades, it may be difficult to truly celebrate that meaning of Labor Day this year, but hopefully a year from now we will have a brighter and more optimistic picture to enjoy during the long weekend.
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