While we all look forward to a holiday weekend, I wonder how many people think about the meaning of Labour Day. It’s a day to celebrate the 8-hour working day and 40-hour working week.
These things are changing as more people do shift work and part-time work. Unfortunately, some of the changes today are making it harder for workers to earn a good living, to pay the rent or mortgage, to buy shoes for their children and still have enough money for emergencies like car repairs. Some workers in retail who would like to work 40 hours a week, now have to accept fewer hours. Many workers do not have employment security which means they could easily lose their job.
So for those workers with a secure job and good pay, Labour Day is a day to celebrate.
Listen to October 25 2015 for more about Labour Day and type “Labour Day” in the search box for more posts on this topic.
Vocabulary
- look forward to (v) – to be happy about some future event
- shift work (n) – eg. morning one day, afternoon another day or evening work; some weekend work
- mortgage (n) – a loan from the bank to buy a house; (note: do not pronounce the ‘t’)
- retail (n, adj) – selling goods, working in a shop
- accept (v) – say yes to something (note; not ‘except’)
- secure (adj), security (n) – safe, having a contract which guarantees you a job