Secretary's Labor Day 1999 Message Labor Day 1999 Message from Alexis M. Herman, U.S. Secretary of Labor Secretary Herman greets workers during the annual Labor Day celebration sponsored by New York City's trade unions Wednesday in Central Park. For more than 100 years, America has set aside a day to honor the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of our nation. Our budget deficit is tamed. Inflation is in check. Our unemployment rate is at a 30-year low.
American workers have opportunities unlike any they have had before.
But on this last Labor Day of the 20th Century, we must also look ahead at the future of work and at the hopes and aspirations of the next generation of American working families. The workplace is undergoing rapid change. So are American workers. Technology, globalization and new demographics are constantly redefining what work is. Our challenge is to keep this foundation firm as we manage the changes.