Editor’s note: “Behind the News” is the product of Sun staff assisted by the Sun’s AI lab, which includes a variety of tools such as Anthropic’s Claude, Perplexity AI, Google Gemini and ChatGPT.

Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September each year. It honors and recognizes the American labor movement and the contributions of laborers to the economic and social development of the country [1].

Historical background and creation

The idea of Labor Day began in the late 19th century, amid growing labor unions advocating for improved working conditions, such as the 40-hour work week and paid leave [2]. The first unofficial Labor Day parade took place on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by labor unions like the Knights of Labor [3]

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