Labor Day 2027 falls on Monday, September 6, 2027. It is a federal holiday, and the long weekend runs Saturday, September 4 through Monday, September 6.
Labor Day closes a summer that is, in 2027, the shortest the calendar allows.
Memorial Day falls on May 31, the latest date it can occupy, and Labor Day on September 6, near the middle of its own range — leaving 98 days between the two bookends of the unofficial American summer.
The maximum possible span is 105 days, which occurred in 2026.
Table of Contents
When is Labor Day 2027?
Monday, September 6, 2027.
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Date | Monday, September 6, 2027 |
| Rule | First Monday in September |
| Possible range | September 1 to September 7 |
| Federal holiday | Yes, under 5 U.S.C. 6103 |
| Weekend shift | Never required |
| Long weekend | Saturday, September 4 to Monday, September 6 |
How the date of Labor Day is set
Labor Day is defined in 5 U.S.C. 6103 as the first Monday in September. Because the rule names a weekday, the holiday always produces a three-day weekend and never requires the observance shift that applies to Juneteenth, Independence Day and Christmas in 2027.
Congress made Labor Day a federal holiday on June 28, 1894, when President Grover Cleveland signed the act.
The timing was politically charged: the legislation moved through Congress in the days following the federal suppression of the Pullman Strike, in which federal troops were deployed against striking railroad workers and a number of strikers were killed.
The September date was chosen in part because it carried none of the associations of May 1.
Labor Day 2027 closures by institution
| Institution | Monday, September 6, 2027 |
|---|---|
| Federal offices | Closed |
| Banks and Federal Reserve | Closed |
| U.S. Postal Service | No delivery, offices closed |
| NYSE and Nasdaq | Closed |
| Bond markets, SIFMA | Closed |
| UPS and FedEx | No pickup or delivery, critical services only |
| State and local government | Closed in all 50 states |
| Public schools | Closed; many districts start the following day |
| Retail and grocery | Open, major sale weekend |
| National parks | Open, high attendance |
Like Memorial Day, Labor Day is observed uniformly across every state and every major institution, with no local variation to check.
Why the United States does not observe May 1
Most of the world marks International Workers’ Day on May 1, a date chosen to commemorate the Haymarket affair in Chicago in May 1886 — an American event.
| U.S. Labor Day | International Workers’ Day | |
|---|---|---|
| Date 2027 | Monday, September 6 | Saturday, May 1 |
| Rule | First Monday in September | Fixed date, May 1 |
| Established | Federal holiday, 1894 | Second International, 1889 |
| Commemorates | The labour movement generally | The Haymarket affair, Chicago, 1886 |
| Observed in | United States, Canada | Most of the world |
The United States and Canada are the significant exceptions to the May 1 convention.
Canada’s Labour Day shares the first-Monday-in-September rule and the two countries’ holidays coincide, falling on Monday, September 6 in 2027.
May 1 in the United States is instead designated Loyalty Day and Law Day by presidential proclamation, both established in the 1950s. Neither is a federal holiday and neither closes anything.
Labor Day dates 2025 to 2032
| Year | Labor Day | Memorial Day | Summer span |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | September 1 | May 26 | 98 days |
| 2026 | September 7 | May 25 | 105 days |
| 2027 | September 6 | May 31 | 98 days |
| 2028 | September 4 | May 29 | 98 days |
| 2029 | September 3 | May 28 | 98 days |
| 2030 | September 2 | May 27 | 98 days |
| 2031 | September 1 | May 26 | 98 days |
| 2032 | September 6 | May 31 | 98 days |
98 days is the standard span. Both holidays are Monday-anchored and normally shift together, so the interval only widens when Memorial Day falls early and Labor Day falls late, as in 2026.
What Labor Day 2027 is not
Labor Day is not the astronomical end of summer. Autumn 2027 begins at the September equinox on Thursday, September 23 at 2:01 a.m. EDT, seventeen days after the holiday. Meteorological autumn began on September 1.
It is not International Workers’ Day, which falls on Saturday, May 1, 2027 and is not observed in the United States.
It is not a fixed date. September 6 in 2027 results from the first-Monday rule and moves within a September 1 to September 7 window.
It is not the universal start of the school year. Some districts begin in mid-August and others the day after Labor Day, and the split runs regionally rather than by state.
Frequently asked questions
What day is Labor Day 2027?
Monday, September 6, 2027. Labor Day is fixed to the first Monday in September under 5 U.S.C. 6103, giving it a possible range of September 1 to September 7 and guaranteeing a three-day weekend every year.
Is the post office open on Labor Day 2027?
No. The U.S. Postal Service is closed on Monday, September 6, 2027, with no regular mail delivery. Priority Mail Express is the only service that continues. Banks, federal offices and the stock exchanges are also closed.
Why does the US celebrate Labor Day in September and not May 1?
Because Congress chose September when it created the federal holiday in 1894, deliberately avoiding the May 1 date associated with the international labour movement. May 1 commemorates the Haymarket affair in Chicago in 1886, and by 1894 it carried associations the government preferred not to endorse. Canada uses the same September rule; most other countries use May 1.
