[Recorded September 1, 1976. Released September 5, 1976]
Labor Day has a special significance in our Bicentennial Year. This year we Americans discovered a renewed spirit of confidence and unity, a spirit built in large measure upon the efforts and dreams of America's workers.
America has always been more than a nation; it has been the fulfillment of promises, because Americans of every generation rolled up their sleeves and went to work. Because of that, we grow stronger every day.
Labor Day stands for America's greatest natural resource--not its minerals, its timber, or its farmland, but its people: Americans who get up early every day and go home tired every night, quietly creating a better life for their families and fellow citizens.
Today 88 million Americans are on the job--more than ever before in our Nation's history. But we cannot be satisfied until every American who wants to work has a meaningful and productive job. With the help of the dynamic American labor force, we will achieve that goal of full employment.
So, to you, the workers of America, whether you work in factories, farms, offices, stores, or construction sites, congratulations for a job well done.
Note: The President spoke at 12:50 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White House. His remarks were recorded for later broadcast.
Gerald R. Ford, Remarks for Labor Day Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/242538
