Fruits of Our Labor by Hank Silverberg We are a culturally diverse country. Our natural resources are spectacular and plenty. But it took the Labor Movement of the 1930's to turn us into a progressive nation. For most of this country's first two hundred years, those who did manual labor were exploited and abused by the rich and powerful. Labor Day is a time to celebrate the American worker, whether it be the indentured Irishmen who built the Erie Canal (1817 -1825), the Irish and Chinese immigrants and newly freed Black men who built the Transcontinental Railroad (1863-1869) or the Mohawk Iron workers who risked their lives to put up the Empire State Building in the early 1930's. It is relevant today to remember that without the union strikes and protests in the streets-- sometimes violent ones-- we would not have the 40 hour work week, Social Security, Medicare, safe working conditions, a ban on child labor, the minimum wage, and other protections like paid sick leave