Editor’s note: The following commentary is an updated version of one that appeared in 2024 in the City Paper.

Special to the City Paper | September 1 is Labor Day, the day when our nation honors the working women and men who built this country and make it prosperous.

It is also the time to remember the achievements of the organized labor movement in the United States. Unionized workers correctly refer to themselves as “the folks who brought you the weekend.”

Many basic American rights and benefits that are often taken for granted — the eight-hour work day and a five-day work week — were not willingly handed to workers by benevolent employers. Workplace changes came through perseverance and struggle. Gaining legal recognition of workers’ rights to a voice in management and working c

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