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How Much Do You Know About Labor Day?

Test your knowledge of summer’s last celebration with this quiz

Kenneth Terrell,

Updated August 27, 2024

AARP

En español

Published August 30, 2022

/ Updated August 27, 2024

10 Questions

2b0c12b8-1e21-48b3-8485-078cf9f9e411

How Much Do You Know About Labor Day?

[ {
 "question" : "In what year did Labor Day become a federal holiday?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "1891",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1892",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1893",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1894",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "The creation of Labor Day as a federal holiday was one of the achievements of the labor movement of the late 1800s.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "When did the first Labor Day parade in the nation take place?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "1882",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "1888",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1894",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1890",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "While the federal holiday wasn’t created until 12 years later, the first Labor Day parade happened Sept. 5, 1882, in New York, New York. An estimated 10,000 people took unpaid time off from work to march to City Hall.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "In May 1894, employees of the Pullman Palace Car Co. — most of whom were African American — went on strike to protest long hours and low wages. Just over a month later, the federal government sent soldiers to break the strike. In what city did the confrontation between workers and soldiers take place?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Boston, Massachusetts",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Chicago, Illinois",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "Tulsa, Oklahoma",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "San Francisco, California",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "The deadly riots that resulted from this conflict were one reason why Congress created Labor Day as an olive branch to workers’ rights activists and protesters.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "According to the Emily Post Institute, is it okay to wear white clothing after Labor Day?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Yes",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "No way. There are some “rules” you just don’t break.",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "“White can be worn 365 days a year,” according to the institute, which specializes in etiquette issues. “The old rule about only wearing white between Memorial Day and Labor Day is a thing of the past.”\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "Labor Day is the unofficial end of summer cookout season. How many hot dogs do Americans eat between Memorial Day and Labor Day?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "4 billion",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "5 billion",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "6 billion",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "7 billion",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, Americans eat more than 150 million hot dogs on just the Fourth of July.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "Several states enacted their own Labor Day holidays before the federal government passed a national celebration. Which state was the first to pass a Labor Day law?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Illinois",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "New York",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Oregon",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "Texas",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "Oregon passed its Labor Day law on Feb. 21, 1887, though New York had introduced a bill earlier.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "On which day of the week was the first Labor Day celebrated?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Monday",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Tuesday",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "Wednesday",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Friday",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "The first Labor Day event in 1882 took place on a Tuesday. But once the celebration became a national holiday, the decision to make it a three-day weekend quickly became the tradition.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "Which president signed the bill that made Labor Day a national holiday?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Grover Cleveland",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "Benjamin Harrison",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "William McKinley",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Theodore Roosevelt",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "President Cleveland signed the law June 28, 1894.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "When was the law that enacted the 8-hour workday for railway workers passed?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "1896",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1906",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "1916",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 }, {
 "answer" : "1926",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "Before the Adamson Act became law Sept. 3, 1916, many Americans worked 12-hour days, seven days a week.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
 "question" : "Which countries have tested a four-day work week?\n",
 "answers" : [ {
 "answer" : "Belgium and Iceland",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "Ireland and Spain",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "South Africa and Japan",
 "correctAnswer" : false
 }, {
 "answer" : "All of the above",
 "correctAnswer" : true
 } ],
 "multiSelect" : false,
 "explanation" : "While no nation has fully adopted a four-day work week yet, many countries are experimenting with the practice.\n",
 "hint" : "",
 "hintLink" : "",
 "questionImgCaption" : "",
 "questionImgCredit" : ""
} ]

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How Much Do You Know About Labor Day?

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Kenneth Terrell covers employment, age discrimination, work and jobs, careers, and the federal government for AARP. He previously worked for the Education Writers Association and U.S. News & World Report, where he reported on government and politics, business, education, science and technology, and lifestyle news.