When President Grover Cleveland established the Labor Day holiday in 1894, he noted it was to "celebrate and pay tribute to the contribution of unions to our nation's strength, freedom and leadership." Free trade unions are the hallmark of democracies.

The role of unions has always been to provide workplace justice through collective bargaining and a grievance process, through involvement in the community and through our aspiring democratic political system. The unfortunate reality is that, without a union, workers have little or no rights at the workplace. Labor laws help, but without a day-to-day enforcing system, they are in many cases irrelevant.

On Labor Day, we need to remember history and the important struggle that workers and their leaders have played in fighting for worker rights and fair conditions in the workplace.

First, every year we rightly commemorate the many veterans of past and present wars on Memorial Day. But we too often forget the workers who faced the challenges and threats of the daily workplace. They go to work to provide bread for their families and are, too often, victims.

In 2008, more than 5,000 U.S. workers were killed, another 50,000 died from occupational injuries and 2.4 million were hurt in job-related accidents. Unreported injuries could push the totals to more than 14 million, according to the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Industries Workplace Safety Report. These workers are victimized by the negligence of employers who don't provide healthy and safe workplaces.

Profit, too, often seems more important than human life and welfare.

Without unions to protest and work for better enforcement through the grievance procedure, there would be no protection in the battle for safety at the workplace.

Second, in an average year, more than 200 trade union leaders throughout the world are killed as they work to obtain basic rights for workers — the American model. Recent worker protests in China show the universal importance and effectiveness of union principles.

Third, as we celebrate Labor Day, we need to recognize not only the union leaders and historical leadership figures, but the individual workpeople of all races and colors and of both genders who stand up for their rights. They often pay the price, being harassed and losing their jobs. Their sacrifices today and throughout history have raised standards for all workers, organized and unorganized.

Anti-union employers and political right-wingers who do not understand history, and who fight or disparage unions, do not appreciate that American unions rejected revolution and continue to work for workplace democracy and their share of American productivity through unions and the democratic political system.

On this 2010 Labor Day, we should be proud of unions and their continuing contributions to our society and our community. Join the celebration Monday from noon to 3 p.m. at the Railyard Park.

Santa Fean Stanley Rosebud Rosen is a professor emeritus, labor and industrial relations, University of Illinois.