This Week's Facts:

-Take Moment to Reflect on Labor History During Holiday Weekend

-Census Bureau has Myriad of Labor Statistics Available Online

-Dept. of Labor Provides Safety Tips to Reduce Workplace Violence

-USA.gov Offers Timely Hurricane Safety Tips

DWD Provides Resources that Benefit Job Searchers, Employers

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development, which works with the Data Center Program in Indiana, serves employees and employers across the state. It provides access to job search resources through WorkOne Centers, help with unemployment insurance, educational information about the labor market, and professional training for the entire state. It also maintains a website, Hoosiers by the Numbers, which provides public access to workforce and economic data about Indiana. Check it out!

USA.gov Offers Timely
Hurricane Safety Tips

Thankfully, hurricanes do not reach us here in the landlocked Midwest, but many of us know people on the southern coast of the U.S. Here are reminders about Hurricane Safety, including safety tips from the USDA for pets in the path of Hurricane Isaac.

Friday Facts Editorial Team:

Katharine Springer
State Data Center Coordinator

Kim Brown-Harden
State Documents Coordinator

Join the FDLP-IN listserv for the latest government information

The Indiana SDC/BIDC
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Take Moment to Reflect on Labor History During Holiday Weekend

Labor Day is now considered the traditional end-of-summer celebration - and the end to wearing white for the summer season.  Before these traditions, however, Labor Day had a deeper meaning. The day has a vital history to the American worker. The first Monday in September marks the creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers.  It represents an annual national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the United States and beyond. The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. In 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, and the Central Labor Union urged organizations in other cities to follow its example and celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday” on that date. The idea continued to spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country. 

The first governmental recognition of the holiday came from municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature and the first law passed was in Oregon on February 21, 1887. That same year four more states - Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York - created the Labor Day holiday by state law.  By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania followed suit.  By 1894, 23 other states adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28^th, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories. For more information about the history and origin of Labor Day and current information on workers’ rights and safety, visit the United States Department of Labor website.  As we relax, barbeque, and celebrate this Labor Day holiday, please remember the history of the American worker and the struggles they endured and survived.   Happy Labor Day!

Census Bureau has Myriad of Labor Statistics Available Online

Get your facts & figures, right here! Start off at the USA.gov portal. It offers several links to Labor Day resources for all of us – kids, students, families, employees, and general citizens. If you want stats fast: According to the Census Bureau’s 2010 American Community Survey, Americans worked in a variety of occupations in 2010. Here is a sampling from the Labor Day Facts for Features:

Don’t forget to check out the Bureau of Labor Statistics Databases, Tables, & Calculators by Subject webpage for links to inflation calculators, regional & international labor resources,  unemployment rate maps, and more!

Dept. of Labor Provides Safety Tips to Reduce Workplace Violence

Many workplaces have hazards - some hidden and others that are obvious. One emerging occupational safety and health issue is workplace violence. Employers can develop practical, effective strategies to protect employees from serious risk and provide a safe, healthy work environment. The Indiana Department of Labor has safety tips and resources to help employees and employers with this safety hazard. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) defines workplace violence as any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs in the workplace. Acts of workplace violence include threats, verbal abuse, physical assaults, and even homicide. Workplace violence can affect and involve employees, clients, customers, and visitors. There are a number of risk factors that can increase a worker’s exposure to workplace violence and assaults such as contact with the public, exchanging money for services and/or goods, working late-night or early morning hours, and working in high crime areas. If you, your family members, friends, or neighbors have one or more of these risk factors, make sure you visit the Indiana Department of Labor and OSHA websites to keep current on safety tips, strategies, and reports.