What I Want to Do?
The first Labor Day, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, was celebrated Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, as a tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of the country.
In 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a “workingmen's holiday” on that date.
The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.
From this point, a movement developed to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on Feb. 21, 1887.
During that year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment.
By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.
Those high-sounding words don't mean much to members of a Lifesteps' preschool class, one of eight at Lifesteps' central facility, 383 New Castle Road
Meeting on a recent day before Monday's holiday, the 3- to 5-year-olds were thinking less in terms of early morning alarms, commutes to work and 401(k) plan contributions and more on what work seemed as if it would be really fun.
Olivia Bush, 5, of Butler allowed that the recently concluded Rio Olympics had set her future employment plans.
“I want to be an Olympics gymnast because I watched it on the show. I went yesterday to gymnastics, and I know how to do cartwheels, handstands and splits,” Olivia said before ending her soliloquy to demonstrate her proficiency at double- and single-handed cartwheels.
It was no occupation so flashy for Parker Hopkins, 4, of Evans City, who said he wanted to be a construction worker.
“I want to fix stuff for houses. I want tools that can fix stuff,” Parker said.
The perks of the job are also what attracted Jacob Benninger, 5, of Butler.
He said, “I want to be a tractor driver and I will have my hat on. I will drive my tractor to work and work with my dad. Dad will drive tractors with me.”
The accessories are what makes law enforcement look like a likely line of work to Mason McElhaney, 4, of Butler.“Police officers get the bad guys. That's what I would do. I also like the hats they wear,” Mason said.Isabelle Krahe, 4 of Prospect, is opting for a career in the performing arts, although she seems a bit fuzzy on some of the moves a prima ballerina is required to perform.“They spin around. I like to dance, but I don't know how to do a cartwheel,” Isabelle said.Undaunted, she was determined to apply herself to her craft.“But I will learn at ballerina class,” she vowed,Preston Mottern, 4, of Butler plans to work from home, avoiding any sort of commute altogether.Preston said, “I want to be a daddy. I will work at my house and work on my computer. That's what I would do.”And perhaps Robert Craig, 3, of Butler is thinking of going into crime scene forensics, or cryptography or art restoration.When asked about his future employment, Robert said, “ I want to do puzzles when I grow up.”It's doubtful Robert's puzzle solving made it into the latest Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry employment situation report for July 2016.Pennsylvania's unemployment rate was unchanged from June at 5.6 percent. Pennsylvania's rate remained above that of the United States, which, at 4.9 percent, also stayed at its June level.Pennsylvania's civilian labor force was down 15,000 from June to 6,521,000. Resident employment declined by 18,000 while the unemployment count increased by 3,000.Total nonfarm jobs rose 7,900 to 5,891,100 in July. Six of the 11 supersectors added jobs from June. The largest movement was a gain of 3,100 in education and health services. The largest drop was 1,600 in both financial activities and professional and business services.Over the year, total nonfarm jobs in Pennsylvania were up 58,000 (up 1 percent). The largest increase from last year was in education and health services (up 28,000), while the largest decline was in mining and logging (down 9,300).
