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WHAT WE MUST REMEMBER ABOUT LABOR DAY

"Labor Day must become a time for families to unite, to send the message loud and clear that we want better for ourselves and our families."

By KYLE SIMMONS

Just as we remember the fight for independence on July 4 and honor the memories of those we lost on Sept. 11, Labor Day needs to be observed as something much more than merely the last long weekend of the summer.

With tens of millions of workers in the United States underemployed and having to depend on public assistance or two or three jobs just to pay for the basics, food and shelter, Labor Day must become a time for families to unite, to send the message loud and clear that we want better for ourselves and our families. We can move towards hope and prosperity for working families through union membership.

In 2015, fewer than 12 percent of U.S. workers belong to a union, a statistic that indicates the labor movement has lost ground. We are addressing this problem by organizing more and more working men and women in the public and private sectors. But more needs to be done.

Unions give every working person a voice.

Unions have made strides that benefit all working people. The five-day, 40-hour work week, sick leave, overtime pay, fair wages, safe working conditions and weekends off are some of the benefits unions won that we now take for granted.

These benefits are enjoyed by millions of working men and women in the United States, and they came about through organized labor. These rights did not happen because
employers decided to be nice to employees. Workers united and fought for these rights; some even lost their lives so we could have these rights.

The right to organize and the future promise of retirement in dignity with a pension are threatened, reduced and even snatched away completely by greedy corporations and short-sighted politicians who do their bidding.

If corporations have their way, there will be no more Labor Day holiday - or any days off that we currently enjoy. Their focus is not on the well-being of the worker. Their focus is on profits fattening their pockets. You may as well forget about backyard barbecues, sporting events and vacations. These are "luxuries" that struggling Americans - the unemployed, the homeless, the underpaid, the men and women working two, even three jobs cannot afford or have time to enjoy. Their focus is to stay alive, to survive day-by-day.

That's why it is more important than ever that we return to the basics and make union membership and active participation a top priority. Labor Day needs to return to the tradition of the first Monday of September with all people coming together to commemorate the value of the labor movement.

All of us standing together, standing tall and marching proudly on Labor Day, will send a message to government, to corporations, to the media and to our brothers and sisters in the movement: We march for labor today for a better tomorrow.

Kyle Simmons is the president of New York City Laborers Local 924, one of the founding locals of DC 37.

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