When is Labor Day?
Answer
The first Monday in September
Explanation
Labor Day in the United States is observed on the first Monday in September every year. Specific dates in this period include September 7, 2026; September 6, 2027; September 4, 2028; and September 3, 2029. The first-Monday rule has been the federal designation since Congress passed the Labor Day Act on June 28, 1894, which President Grover Cleveland signed into law (28 Stat. 96), making the first Monday in September a legal public holiday in the District of Columbia and the federal territories. By that time, more than 30 states had already adopted similar Labor Day observances.
The first Labor Day parade was organized in New York City on September 5, 1882 by the Central Labor Union, drawing about 10,000 to 20,000 workers who marched from City Hall to Union Square. The idea is generally credited to either Peter J. McGuire, co-founder of the American Federation of Labor and head of the Brotherhood of Carpenters, or Matthew Maguire, a Knights of Labor secretary; historians have not settled the question. Oregon was the first state to make Labor Day an official state holiday, on February 21, 1887.
The push for federal action accelerated after the Pullman Strike of May to July 1894, in which a strike by Pullman Palace Car Company workers in Chicago expanded into a national rail boycott led by Eugene V. Debs's American Railway Union. President Cleveland sent federal troops to Chicago at the request of the U.S. Attorney General, and the strike collapsed, leaving 30 dead and more than 50 injured. Congress and Cleveland, eager to repair relations with the labor movement, hurried the Labor Day bill through Congress; the House passed it unanimously and the Senate passed it without a recorded vote, and Cleveland signed it on June 28, 1894, six days before the federal troops broke the strike at Pullman. The holiday is now codified at 5 U.S.C. section 6103.
Most U.S. workers, federal and private, have the day off; banks, the U.S. Postal Service, and most schools and government offices close. The day is also widely understood as the unofficial end of summer in much of the country, marking the traditional end of the swimming season, the start of the school year in most states, and the close of major summer travel. Customary observances include parades organized by labor unions, picnics, family barbecues, college football season-opening games, and Major League Baseball games.
Why this matters for your test
Knowing the date of Labor Day allows applicants to plan around a federal holiday observed by nearly every employer and government office, and orients them to the country's calendar of major civic holidays. It also marks an important seasonal transition between summer and the start of the school year.
Source: USCIS 128 Civics Questions (2025)
