The first Labor Day Parade took place in New York City in September, 1882. It was put on by a new organization of workers, called the Knights of Labor. Two-thirds of the organization were Catholic, as was their president, Terence Pwoderly. In 1891 Pope Leo XIII wrote an encyclical "About New Things" concerning the condition of workers. Most revolutionary were two statements: that workers had a natural right to a just wage and that workers had a natural right to organize to bargain for a just wage and safe working conditions.
In 1973, 26.6 % of U.S. workers belonged to unions and 51.9 % of all income went to the middle class; by 2015 those numbers were down to 11.1 % and 45.7%. In 1965 the average C.E.O. compensation at America's largest firms was 20 times the average annual pay of the typical worker; in 2016 it was 271 times larger. These figures are from an article in America's issue of September 4, 2017.
We pray for justice.
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