[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 175 (Friday, September 9, 2016)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 62601-62602]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-21924]



[[Page 62599]]

Vol. 81

Friday,

No. 175

September 9, 2016

Part III





The President





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Proclamation 9486--Labor Day, 2016
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  Federal Register / Vol. 81 , No. 175 / Friday, September 9, 2016 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 62601]]

                Proclamation 9486 of September 2, 2016

                
Labor Day, 2016

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                The strongest middle class the world has ever known was 
                not built overnight. It was achieved by men and women 
                who believed that living up to the promise of this 
                Nation meant more than hoping for the best--it meant 
                toiling in the day, working through the night, and 
                proving that theirs was a future worth fighting for. On 
                Labor Day, we celebrate the grit and resilience of 
                America's workers and their families, and we recommit 
                to reaching for a world in which they are afforded the 
                rights and opportunities they deserve.

                America celebrated its first Labor Day in the late 19th 
                century, when a group of industrial workers in New York 
                joined in common purpose to celebrate their 
                contributions to our country. Growing in numbers by the 
                thousands, they went without their daily pay to march 
                for their cause--setting in motion a labor movement 
                that has inspired generations of Americans since. 
                Clear-eyed and persistent, these hardworking union 
                members, and those that followed in the path they 
                forged, helped secure privileges we now take for 
                granted--not only for themselves, but also for their 
                friends and loved ones and neighbors. Their efforts 
                brought about weekends and 40-hour workweeks, overtime 
                pay and a minimum wage, and the collective bargaining 
                rights that have empowered so many. Because of the 
                battles they waged, our Nation benefits from health 
                insurance and Medicare, Social Security, and other 
                retirement programs. Their legacy is one we will never 
                stop striving to uphold.

                When I took office, our country faced the worst 
                recession many of us had ever seen. But through the 
                determination of our resilient workforce--the best 
                workers on the planet--we have been able to lay a 
                stronger foundation for our economy. Our auto industry 
                has emerged stronger than ever, and the manufacturing 
                sector, on the decline during the Great Recession and 
                in its aftermath, has added over 800,000 new jobs. 
                American businesses have added 15.1 million jobs since 
                2010. We are now in the middle of the longest streak of 
                overall job growth on record, and wage growth has 
                accelerated.

                My priority since taking office has always been the 
                well-being of the American people, and over the course 
                of my Administration, I have taken steps to make sure 
                everyone in our workforce is treated and compensated in 
                ways that reflect the effort they put in. Whether by 
                pursuing measures that can help ensure a fair day's pay 
                for a hard day's work, updating occupational health and 
                safety rules so that no one has to risk their life or 
                health for their job, or working with State leaders to 
                increase access to paid sick and family leave, we have 
                made great strides on our journey to protecting and 
                growing the middle class. We are working to increase 
                and diversify apprenticeships as part of a job-driven 
                skills agenda, and protect middle class savings by 
                expanding retirement security. And by striving to close 
                the gender pay gap, include more veterans and Americans 
                with disabilities in our workforce, protect people who 
                choose to organize a union in their workplaces, and 
                prevent people from being denied opportunities because 
                of who they are or who they love, we have moved closer 
                to giving all our people an equal shot at making it in 
                our global economy.

[[Page 62602]]

                On Labor Day, we are reminded that jobs are about more 
                than a paycheck. They afford us the ability to take 
                care of our family, friends, and neighbors; to save for 
                that well-deserved retirement; to give back to our 
                communities and the country we would do anything for. 
                Jobs allow us to dream, to look toward the future, and 
                to encourage our children to do the same. Though there 
                is much more to do until all our men and women have the 
                rights and respect they need to thrive in their 
                workplaces, on this occasion, let us recommit to 
                standing together and resolving to create change. If we 
                do, I am confident we can reach new heights for 
                ourselves, for our children, and for generations to 
                come.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim September 5, 2016, as 
                Labor Day. I call upon all public officials and people 
                of the United States to observe this day with 
                appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that 
                honor the contributions and resilience of working 
                Americans.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                second day of September, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand sixteen, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-first.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2016-21924
Filed 9-8-16; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F6-P