Why is work so important to Americans?
As an American, I find myself asking that question daily. But seriously, why do we lead with work in our daily conversations? Why do we wrap our identities up in our careers? Why do we spend the majority of our waking hours working for our lives? It’s strange, no?
Quick disclaimer — I’m not saying we shouldn’t work by any means. I am merely wondering why it is the primary focus for Americans. It’s so important that we have a holiday celebrating the efforts of American workers: Labor Day.
Labor Day began in 1882 in New York City by the Central Labor Union and became a federal holiday in 1894. “Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. The holiday is rooted in the late nineteenth century, when labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity, and well-being.”1
Essentially American workers made America what it is and they wanted to be celebrated. With one day…
I find that to be extremely problematic and you should too. Granted, those were different times and that was a huge deal in 1894, not taking anything from that victory. The problematic part being that we are still ingrained to prioritize work above all else in the present day, just like in 1894.
Why is that?
According to “What is work? A short history” by Richard Donkin, a fantastic 1-minute brass tacks read on the history of work, it originally grew from the need to survive, humans requiring food, water, shelter, and safety. Inventions and tools made survival easier which made room for surplus and then competition. Innovation grew from there, creating trade and consumers. Then surprise surprise, religion enters the group chat as a major influence, adding their spin on purpose as a factor to why we work.
“A combination of all these factors promoted hierarchy, slavery, warfare, coercion, serfdom, pay, education and charity. Add in management, economies of scale, nationalism, government, commerce and commodity exploitation and you see the world we know today taking shape.”2
With the rise of competition, attributed to the Industrial Revolution, and the PR machine that is religion, joy is sucked out of life and replaced with an out-of-proportion value for hard work.
“We are raised to believe in the moral virtue of work. Historians attribute this in part to the Protestant Reformation, going back to the 16th century, whose leaders viewed work as God’s will and play as the breeding ground of sin, and even more to the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries, when the economy changed from primarily agricultural to factory-based industrial. The schools that arose in the Protestant era and became compulsory and state-supported in the 19th century and continue essentially unchanged today (but even more consuming of children’s time) were designed explicitly to promote the ideology of work and suppress the natural human desire to play.”3
Out of that perfect storm of innovation and messaging, bloomed the American Dream. A country of immigrants and fresh opportunities, proving anyone from anywhere can achieve anything they work hard enough at, propelling folks to levels of success they never even dreamed of. This is the basis of our country and should be a point of pride but somehow that has morphed into the idea that personal success is only derived from professional performance: your worth is what you can achieve through work.
The American Dream became the goal of most Americans, believing they too can reach new heights, and rightfully so. That truly is the dream and should be for anyone. The Full Employment Bill of 1945 made sure that all Americans should be able to work and have the right to employment, further solidifying this dream for all. All of this should be celebrated.
Again, this is all correct. Everyone should be able to seek full and gainful employment; everyone should be able to transcend their origins; everyone should have access to upward mobility — although the elimination of classes would be nice too. With all of this said, our occupation should not define who we are and should not become an obstacle to enjoying this short life of ours.
And unfortunately, this conditioning begins at birth, training us that work is the priority and we are raised to grow up and successfully enter the workforce, proving to be contributing members of society. Our work identity has suppressed our basic human need to play and LIVE, supplanted by earning our keep.
Is this sustainable? I don’t think it is. I agree that we all must contribute to our communities and our society and that this provides fulfillment and a form of purpose, but it isn’t the only one. Life goes beyond our work and it’s time our expectations and norms reflect that.
The balance of work and play needs to be established, not even restored because that’s assuming we’ve had it before. I don’t have the answers but more of us should be talking about this imbalance.
History of Labor Day. (n.d.). U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.dol.gov/general/laborday/history
Donkin, R. (2021, January 27). What is work? A short history. The People Space. Retrieved August 25, 2024, from https://www.thepeoplespace.com/ideas/articles/what-work-short-history
Gray, P. (2024, January 7). Why Do We Work So Much?: Technology should have reduced our work hours. Why hasn’t it? Psychology Today. Retrieved August 27, 2024, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/freedom-to-learn/202401/why-do-we-work-so-much#:~:text=Our%20continued%20implicit%20beliefs%20that,from%20the%20work%20of%20others