We have just completed our Labor Day weekend and now it's back to work. I was wondering how this holiday got its start and I found that it was first celebrated on September 5, in 1882, in New York City. Approximately 10,000 workers organized a parade which was sponsored by the Knights of Labor. The basic idea behind celebrating Labor Day was to have a holiday to honor the working men and women of the day, and give them a day off, a day of rest from their work.

Later, in 1894, Congress passed a bill making Labor Day a national holiday. It was a very important day back then, especially with all the unions behind it. It was a way of honoring the working class, those who strived and struggled every day to earn a living.

Unfortunately, the importance of Labor Day has changed over the years. Now it is celebrated as "the end of summer." The last holiday as school starts. The last three-day weekend to enjoy family gatherings until the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. A lot of businesses are still closed on labor day, but there are some that remain open. Some remain open because they no longer celebrate the holiday, others remain open so that they can catch the workers that are off as they visit the malls and other shops.

Honoring the hard worker is a good cause, but the attitude of the worker has also changed over the years like the holiday that honors them. It's hard to find dedicated hard-working employees anymore. People are not grateful for their jobs like they used to be. They don't feel a sense of obligation to their employer to show up on time, call in if sick, work while they are at work, and take pride in the work they do. It was told to me when I started to join the work force that I should always give 100% to my employer, and be a professional in whatever I did. Your work should be as if you were signing your name and reputation to the finished product. After all, your employee is the one helping to pay your bills, putting food on your table and much more.

Nowadays workers do nothing but complain about their job, they put forth hardly any worthwhile effort, but yet want all the benefits they can have handed to them. Of course there are the exceptions to the case, and they are a gem, a diamond in the rough, when you find them, but for the most part employers have to deal with the attitude that the employer owes them, the employees, something.

On the other hand there are employers who do not take care of their employees as well as they should and keep the benefits at a minimum while expecting 100% from those they employ. Employer and employee need to work hand in hand so that the business or organization will continue to grow and be able to provide better benefits.

Being a hard-working employee is something we pride ourselves on in our country. Factory workers, banks, government employees such as schools, city, state, and federal agencies, all help make up the work force. We need to earn our keep so to speak, but at the same time we as workers need to do and give our best to our employers. It's the working men and women that make this country great.