Molded over centuries through strikes and lost lives, technological advances and new leaders, labor on Kaua‘i continues to evolve as most of the working class stays clocked out today. Although Labor Day has come to signify the end of summer
Molded over centuries through strikes and lost lives, technological advances and new leaders, labor on Kaua‘i continues to evolve as most of the working class stays clocked out today.
Although Labor Day has come to signify the end of summer and a three-day weekend for most residents, Congress created the national holiday under union pressure in 1894 to give workers a day off.
Some of the most active Kaua‘i unions stem from importing thousands of Chinese, Japanese and Filipinos during the mid-19th and early 20th centuries to provide cheap labor for a booming sugar industry.
The importations created a rich diversity here, but resulted in numerous strikes over the next 100 years as workers fought for better living conditions and other employee rights.
One such demonstration turned into the Hanapepe Massacre of 1924.
Sixteen Filipino sugar laborers reportedly fighting for $2 a day wages and 8-hour workdays were killed in the Sept. 9 incident along with four police officers — boosting the foundation for unions such as the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 142.
For more than 50 years, the state’s largest private sector union has fought “to advance the living standards of our fellow workers everywhere in the world, to promote the general welfare of our nation and our communities, to banish racial and religious prejudice and discrimination, to strengthen democracy everywhere and achieve permanent peace in the world,” ILWU’s preamble states.
From the “Great Sugar Strike” in 1946 to workers forcing sugar mill closures in 1958 and thousands picketing in 1974, the ILWU has united Kaua‘i laborers to fight for change, historical records show. The ILWU now represents 22,000 workers.
But times change.
One of the last remaining Hawai‘i sugar companies, Gay & Robinson, is transforming into an ethanol plant, effectively ending the Kaua‘i exportation of sugar as a commodity.
In 2006, the construction sector expanded its job base nearly 20 percent, according to a University of Hawai‘i report, reflecting a flood of project proposals on Kaua‘i.
Although the leading labor force in recent years has moved from sugar plantations to development construction sites, unions have retained an active role for government workers and nurses.
The Hawai‘i Government Employees Association/AFSCME Local 152 now represents nearly 30,000 state and county employees.
“This Labor Day, we are thankful that many more citizens in our community understand the important role of public employees in our local economy, and that we are moving forward together to collaboratively address concerns and aspirations important to Hawai‘i,” Executive Director Russell K. Okata said in a letter to the editor. “In the very near term, many experienced and valuable public employees will be retiring. This will challenge all of us, especially the HGEA. The pay, benefits and terms and conditions of employment must remain competitive to attract and retain the best and brightest talent for government to function efficiently.”
Last year, Wilcox Memorial Hospital nurses staged a 126-day strike in a fight to develop a system that determines staffing levels based on patient needs.
“Labor Day last year on Kaua‘i was a time of great contention between labor and management as represented by the Kaua‘i nurses strike,” said D.Q. Jackson, retired Kaua‘i union leader. “Both sides fought for what they believed to be important and the sacrifices were impressive. Labor Day this year will be quieter as the two sides now work together. May they each find a greater understanding of the purpose and worth of one another and celebrate that today.”
The Hawai‘i Nurses Association represents 23 facilities in the state and continues to push at the Legislature for better working conditions.
Unions aside, Labor Day here has a Hawaiian twist due to the plethora of nationalities.
One of the largest celebrations started Thursday, when residents began flocking to the four-day 25th anniversary Okinawan Festival in Waikiki that honors ethnic diversity through food, dance, music and performing arts.
Some residents today will also celebrate the life of Queen Liliuokalani, the last reigning monarch, who was born on Sept. 2, 1838. She was the first to visit the leper colony on the island of Molokai in 1877 and brought gifts to the residents, according to O‘ahu real estate agent Celeste “Sally” Cheeseman.
“Labor Day celebrates the working class people,” she said. “For me personally, I work hard all year and enjoy the day off.”
Cheeseman’s online blog post recognizing the various ways Hawai‘i celebrates Labor Day drew dozens of comments from residents on Kaua‘i and across the country.
“I’ve learned so much more about Hawai‘i. Sally had so many things about the history and the culture that we would never hear about here,” said Teri Eckholm, a mother and Realtor from Anoka County, Minn.
Eckholm, who frequently writes on the ActiveRain.com Web site where she found Cheeseman’s blog, said Hawai‘i is her family’s “dream vacation.”
In Minnesota, she said celebrating Labor Day is about spending time with family and friends at the state fair and lake cabins.
With Kaua‘i’s week-long county fair ending Aug. 26, residents were seen transitioning into the Labor Day weekend at family picnics and beach cookouts.
“The purpose of Labor Day is to celebrate the value and worth of America’s working people,” Jackson said. “Usually we just celebrate the holiday and think little of its true meaning.”
• Nathan Eagle, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or neagle@kauaipubco.com.
