NEGAUNEE, Mich. (WZMQ) — Despite rain cutting festivities short, union members and community supporters gathered in Negaunee Monday to celebrate Labor Day — a holiday deeply tied to the Upper Peninsula’s history and industries.
Tony Ghiringhelli, president of the Upper Peninsula Regional Labor Federation, said the holiday is more than a day off.
“We have a rich labor history in the U.P. and we can’t forget how we got here,” Ghiringhelli said. “You wouldn’t have overtime, you wouldn’t have paid holidays, and you wouldn’t have a day like Labor Day if it weren’t for the sacrifices that were made to get to the point we are today.”
The U.P.’s economy was long built on mining, steel and timber. Ghiringhelli noted that because those natural resource jobs couldn’t be outsourced, they became the backbone of a strong organized labor identity.
“We built this country,” Ghiringhelli said. “Michigan wouldn’t be what it is today if not for the steel and the timber that supplies the rest of the country. It’s a dangerous job and a hard job, so we’re going to do it but we’re going to get good pay and good benefits if you want us to do that kind of work.”
Adam Saari, a trustee for the U.P. Regional Labor Federation, emphasized that Labor Day honors all working people, not just union members.
“Labor Day is important for everybody because blue-collar workers are the people that brought America to the point it’s at,” Saari said. “If you don’t have the working class, you don’t have the prosperity that we have.”
Labor Day dates back to 1882, when workers first marched in New York City to draw attention to job conditions. Saari said that legacy still resonates in the U.P. today.
“At the end of the day we drive things like job conditions and general wages up in our communities,” he said. “So whether it’s union or not union, you’re still getting a wage pushed by us unions to push you into the middle class as a working person.”
Even as rain dampened the annual picnic and rally in Negaunee, attendees said the gathering served as a reminder of how far workers have come — and how strongly the U.P. continues to hold onto its labor traditions.
