One-hundred-and-thirty years ago (1894), U.S. President Grover Cleveland signed the law that made Labor Day a federal holiday.
Because of that law, millions of Americans will wave good-bye to their normal work-day routine this September 2. However, it’s questionable just how many will actually spend even a few minutes of Labor Day in gratitude that, fortunately, working conditions aren’t what they used to be a century or more ago.
So maybe it would be good to do a little reflecting before we become caught up in whatever activity we choose for our day off from work and school.
Work is as old as humanity itself, according to the biblical book of Genesis. Adam and Eve had no sooner been created than God put them into a breath-takingly beautiful garden. And no sooner had they ceased their oohing and aahing (a little imagination here!) than their Creator said, “Oh, I should mention: The only way this garden is going to stay so beautiful is if you take care of it. In other words, you’re going to have to work.”
Work, despite the sweat — whether literally or figuratively — has always been honorable, right from the day Adam and Eve began to tend the garden.
However, an owner/manager/employer class arose early in Earth’s history, a class whose wealth and power meant they didn’t have to do the heavy lifting and sweating themselves — because they could pay others to do it for them.
These two groupings eventually came to be called Capital and Labor. And we have plenty of examples—both ancient and modern—that Capital can become ruthless in what it demands of Labor. And Labor has discovered that through collective bargaining it can wield considerable influence. It’s a symbiotic—but at times fraught—relationship.
In the Torah, Moses included what we might call fair-labor practices. His rules are predicated on a fair day’s output from the worker. They also include fair treatment and fair remuneration from the employer. Note just one example of Moses’ concerns for workers in that era: Since many lived hand-to-mouth, Moses required employers to pay workers on the day they’d worked, not days or weeks later.
In the New Testament book of James, some employers who were wantonly taking advantage of their employees received an unmitigated tongue lashing: “Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on Earth in luxury and self-indulgence….” Strident language indeed.
As we celebrate Labor Day on September 2, Graceworx Community Church invites everyone in Central Florida to pause and reflect on what we should be celebrating and what challenges may not yet have been adequately addressed and effectively implemented.
As an employee, do I demonstrate the honesty, integrity, diligence and commitment that an employer has the right to expect?
As an employer, do I treat employees as I would want to be treated if our roles were reversed?
Such spiritual questions are worth pondering—because they’re really just applications of the Golden Rule in a specific context.
Wishing all Central Floridians a refreshing, rejuvenating and reflective Labor Day celebration!
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