With the sun setting earlier and pumpkin spice lattes returning to menus, summer is wrapping up. It also means Labor Day is approaching, which marks the traditional end of summer as schools reopen, and vacationers return from trips.
During the three-day Labor Day weekend, many Californians will travel, shop for deals online and in-store and maybe sneak in one final visit to the beach or neighborhood pool.
However, the federal holiday is much more than just the summer’s last hurrah. Observed each year on the first Monday of September, Labor Day is also a celebration of the hard-won achievements of America’s labor movement and a recognition of what workers have contributed to the nation’s prosperity.
Here’s what to know about the Labor Day holiday, including when it is in 2025 and how it started.
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When is Labor Day in 2025?
This year, Labor Day falls on Monday, Sept. 1.
Why is Labor Day celebrated?
Rooted in the labor movement of the 19th century, the Labor Day holiday originated during a dismal time for America’s workers, who faced long hours, low wages and unsafe conditions.
As labor unions and activists advocated and fought for better treatment for workers at the height of the Industrial Revolution, the idea arose to establish a day dedicated to celebrating the members of trade and labor unions, according to History.com.
People walk on the boardwalk on September 1, 2024 in Carolina Beach, North Carolina. Airports, highways, beaches and theme parks are expected to be packed across the U.S. this Labor Day in what the TSA expects to be the busiest on record.
How did Labor Day begin?
Two workers can make a solid claim to the title of Labor Day’s official founder, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Some records show that it was Peter J. McGuire, the co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, who in 1882 first suggested the idea for the holiday. However, recent research supports the contention that machinist Matthew Maguire proposed the holiday in 1882, while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York.
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Regardless of who started the holiday, Labor Day soon became recognized by labor activists and individual states long before it became a federal holiday.
Organized by the Central Labor Union, the Labor Day holiday was first celebrated in New York City in 1882, according to the labor department. On that day, 10,000 workers took unpaid time off to march from City Hall to Union Square, according to History.com.
New York was also the first state to introduce a bill recognizing Labor Day, but Oregon was the first to pass such a law in 1887, the labor department states. By 1894, 32 states had adopted the holiday.
When did Labor Day first become federally recognized?
Labor Day became a national holiday in 1894 when President Grover Cleveland signed a law passed by Congress designating the first Monday in September a holiday for workers.
The federal recognition was hard-won, having come after a wave of unrest among workers and labor activists brought the issue of workers’ rights into public view.
In May that year, employees of the Pullman Palace Car Company in Chicago went on strike to protest wage cuts and the firing of union representatives, according to History.com. A month later, the government dispatched troops to Chicago to break up a boycott of the Pullman railway cars initiated by labor activist Eugene V. Debs, unleashing a wave of fatal riots.
Congress quickly passed an act making Labor Day a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories. By June 28, Cleveland signed it into law.
Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at Gdhauari@gannett.com.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Labor Day 2025: Here’s what to know about holiday kicks off fall
