The history of Labor Day: It's not just another day off

On the first Monday of September, the United States celebrates Labor Day. But just what is Labor Day? The fact is, while most of us are happy to get the day off or go to a parade, most of us don't know the history behind the holiday -- only that it's been pegged as the last day of the year that you can wear white pants.

The first Labor Day parade was held September 5th, 1882 in New York City to celebrate the strength of trade and labor organizations and to host a festival for workers' families. But there are conflicting theories as to who created the holiday. Some say that it was Peter J. McGuire of the American Federation of Labor, but others argue it was Matthew Maguire who proposed the holiday while serving as the secretary of the Central Labor Union of New York.

READ MORE SPECIAL COVERAGE ON LABOR DAY: America's strongest labor unions still hold political power

What is clear is that the celebration became an unofficial annual affair in New York City held on the first Monday of September. Other states and cities were following suit by 1885, after some urging from the Central Labor Union.

But the history of Labor Day isn't all parades and parties. Strikes and riots also played a huge role, like Chicago's Haymarket riot. The Haymarket riot left eight people died, and was a major setback for the organized labor movement in America.

Photos of the evolution of American labor:

Then, after the Pullman Strike in 1894, a nationwide railway strike, President Grover Cleveland extended an olive branch to unions, and designated Labor Day a federal holiday. But, rather than celebrate the holiday on International Workers' Day on May 1, which has Communist ties and was just days before the anniversary of the Haymarket riot, President Cleveland went with a date designated by McGuire ... or Maguire.

Today, the holiday is synonymous with the start of the school year, and storewide sales and discounts. Ironically, because of those sales, employees at stores like Wal-Mart are forced to not only work on Labor Day, but work extended hours. Adding insult to injury, they're not allowed to unionize.

More Labor Day coverage on AOL.com:
5 places in the US to avoid on Labor Day weekend
The do's and don'ts of Labor Day shopping
Labor Day recipes for the ultimate end-of-summer feast

%vine-url="https://vine.co/v/5ijxXpWAtOQ"%