Labor Day: Fun Facts

How Did Labor Day Begin?

The first observance of Labor Day is believed to have been a parade of 10,000 workers on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by Peter J. McGuire, a Carpenters and Joiners Union secretary.

By 1893, more than half the states were observing “Labor Day” on one day or another, and Congress passed a bill to establish a federal holiday in 1894. President Grover Cleveland signed the bill soon afterward, designating the first Monday in September as Labor Day. 

Who are We Celebrating?

155.2 million: Number of people 16 and older in the nation’s labor force in June 2012. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Employee Benefits

85.0%: Percentage of full-time workers 18 to 64 covered by health insurance during all or part of 2010. Source: Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010, derived from Table 8

Our Jobs

Americans worked in a variety of occupations in 2010. Here is a sampling of types of jobs along with the number of employees in that profession-

• Actors: 7,835
• Computer Programmers: 389,471
• Cooks: 1,051,896
• Hairdressers, Hairstylists and Cosmetologists: 395,311
• Janitors and Building Cleaners: 1,445,991
• Teachers (preschool – grade 12): 3,073,673
• Telemarketers: 48,455
• Telephone Operators: 33,057
• Web Developers: 115,561 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 American Community Survey, Table B24124

Another Day, Another Dollar

$47,715 and $36,931: The 2010 real median earnings for male and female full-time, year-round workers, respectively. Source: Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010

Early, Lonely and Long - The Commute to Work

25.3 minutes: The average time it took people in the nation to commute to work in 2010. Maryland and New York had the most time-consuming commutes, averaging 31.8 and 31.3 minutes, respectively. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 American Community Survey, Table R0801

3.2 million: Number of workers who faced extreme commutes to work of 90 or more minutes each day in 2010. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 American Community Survey, Table B08012