Why Is It Called Labor Day? The first Labor Day took place in
New York City on Sept. 5, 1882, with picnics organized by the
city's Central Labor Union. It became a legal holiday by an 1894
act of Congress. Celebrating work by not doing any — it was an
idea that seemed destined for greatness. But tell that to
today's workforce, especially those manning the gas stations,
restaurants and retail shops on this day. Americans are now
taking fewer and fewer days off every year, shaving time from
the paltry two weeks of vacation given on average. We now put in
more hours at work than any other industrialized nation in the
world, but don't have much to show for it except stress, polls
show. Europeans — who take full advantage of their four to six
weeks of yearly holiday — are actually more efficient workers,
experts say. For many Americans, it seems, Labor Day no longer
means what it used to. MORE FROM LiveScience.com