A can-do nation marks Labor Day

By A TIMES EDITORIAL
Published September 3, 2007

One hundred forty-six million people get up every day in America and go to work. They build skyscrapers, mine coal, douse fires and teach our children. The work they do and the money they earn sustains not only families but entire communities and the country itself. That's why Labor Day is as relevant today as it first was 125 years ago. Changes in the global market are reshaping how we live and what we bring to American society. ¶ Labor Day was created to recognize the contribution workers made to American democracy. It inspired an appreciation for social and economic justice that served to unify this vast, diverse nation at the dawn of the industrial age. Over time, Labor Day evolved into more than a nod to organized labor. The speeches, parades and picnics became fuller expressions of civic pride, as our great public works and manufacturing capacity came to symbolize the psyche of a can-do people.

That history is worth remembering now that globalization has changed the rules and shaken American confidence. The towns that union jobs created are drying up as factories consolidate or move in search of cheaper labor overseas. More Americans work at home today than belong to unions. The unions are still there for teachers, police officers, firefighters and transit workers. But in the private sector, especially, telecommuting and outsourcing have altered the concept of job stability. A majority of Americans still look on unions favorably, as they have, Gallup shows, since 1936. But millions of Americans are back in school or starting up their own businesses because they know the modern market offers few guarantees.

This uncertainty will reverberate for generations. The latest forecast by the Labor Department is that the two biggest job generators through 2012 will be in the professional and services sectors, which are at opposite ends of the educational and income scales. This holiday also marks the first time since records were kept that the median price of a home - historically, the asset that moved American workers into the middle class - has dropped from the previous year. Many workers who have already lost their insurance and pensions cannot move to find better jobs because they cannot sell their property. The pinch could harden the line between the haves and have-nots, and the freelance mentality could put distance between workers and their communities.

The American worker faces a duality almost contradictory. The global market presents opportunities like never before, but it also stokes anxiety up and down all economic lines. Labor Day is a moment to reflect and recognize the hard work that as a nation brought us to this point. It reminds us how reliant the nation is on different skill sets. Aside from extending the weekend and recalling fading memories of the labor movements of earlier eras, the holiday should reinforce our self-worth and confidence - two very useful qualities in the 21st century.

[Last modified September 2, 2007, 20:36:43]