Kenwood Place Apartments

105 W. 23rd Street , Indianapolis IN 46208

We know Labor Day as an opportunity to take a day off from work or school, but how much do you know about the history of this official holiday? This year, use the first Monday in September as a chance to learn about the history of U.S. workers. Read on for a snapshot look at the story behind this hard-won holiday.

Standing up to the status quo
At the end of the 19^th century during the height of the industrial revolution, working conditions for many were dismal. As manufacturing surpassed agriculture as the nation’s largest employer, the average American worker endured twelve-hour days, seven days a week, to make a basic living. And though some states did restrict child labor, often children as young as 5 or 6 suffered through shifts in mills, mines and factories, earning a tiny portion of an adult wage. All workers — especially immigrants — faced unsafe working conditions. Fresh air, breaks and sanitary facilities were the exception, rather than the rule. 

As a result, workers began to organize strikes and rallies against bad conditions, long hours and low pay. The history of this period is at times a violent one, with incidents such as the Haymarket Riot of 1886, in which several Chicago policemen and workers were killed.

The first holiday
The very first “Labor Day” event in this country was observed on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, when 10,000 workers took unpaid time off and marched from City Hall to Union Square to demand an 8-hour work day.

Two years later, the Central Labor Union adopted the first Monday in September as the official day for the holiday. It encouraged other labor organizations in cities across the country to celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday.” The idea took root in other industrial areas and, by 1885, Labor Day was celebrated in cities across the U.S. On February 21, 1887, Oregon became the first state to make the holiday law.

The federal decision to make Labor Day a holiday came a month after the American Railroad Union, led by Eugene V. Debs, led a boycott of all Pullman railway cars to support striking employees in Chicago who were protesting wage cuts and the firing of union representatives. The boycott crippled the nation’s railroad traffic, triggering the use of federal troops to break the strike. A wave of riots ended in the death of more than a dozen workers.

In part as a conciliatory gesture toward American workers after this tragedy, Congress quickly passed the act that declared Labor Day a federal holiday on June 28, 1894.

Today’s gains
The environment for most modern American workers is a paradise compared to their 19^th century counterparts. Now many enjoy a set work week, compulsory breaks, workers’ compensation, and paid time off as a given. But the struggle for those conditions took many years and a lot of lives. This is the history lesson of the holiday that represents a hard-won day off.

When you officially start apartment hunting, it’s time to put your best foot forward.  In a competitive rental market, getting the best apartment means making a good impression on the person in charge.

Learn how to impress apartment community managers and get a leg up on your competition with these simple tips.

Dress for success
Making a positive impression with community managers starts with your appearance. It may sound superficial, but the way you dress — your clothes, shoes, even the briefcase or purse you carry — all say something about you and about how serious you treat the apartment-hunting process. 

When you prepare to go on apartment visits, make sure you put together a professional look. You will likely discover that maintaining the demeanor of someone who pays her rent on time and takes good care of her apartment space will go a long way toward helping you secure your first-choice apartment rental.

Be prepared with paperwork
Another way to make a good impression with community managers is to be prepared with all the paperwork you need to rent an apartment. Arrive at apartment visits with a list of references, a current copy of your credit report, and the typical information you will need to provide on a rental application. Having all of these items on hand makes an apartment manager’s job easier and makes you stand out as a prepared tenant who is easy to deal with.

You can gather these important documents easily before your apartment visits and keep them organized in an apartment search file. Start by compiling your references and getting permission to allow community managers to contact them.  Next, pull your own credit report online. Finally, find a generic rental application form to fill out, or look online for a particular apartment community’s application to prepare in advance. With application information at the ready, you’ll be prepared with names and dates of former apartments and employment information, for instance.

Be on your best behavior
When you arrive for apartment visits, maintain professional, friendly behavior. Remember that impressing community managers is easiest if you act like you’re on a job interview (though you are also doing some evaluating of your own, of course.)

Be sure to show up on time for your apartment visit appointment, and if you cannot keep an appointment, reschedule or cancel it in advance. Punctuality and good communication are truly paramount if you want to make a good impression.

Stand out from your competition
If you approach apartment visits and apartment community managers with serious attention, you will likely stand out as a better potential tenant than others who may not show that same discipline, and you’ll leave a positive impression after your visit. These steps should give you an edge in landing the coveted apartment rental of your choice in the community you prefer.

What do you do when you want to save some cash on your move, but hate the idea of driving an oversized rental truck? You schedule a self-service move. A happy medium between hiring professional movers and going solo with a rented moving truck, self-service moves are a great alternative for many movers.

Self-service moving
Many people think they’re stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to getting help with moving: either hire a professional moving company to take care of everything and then pay a hefty price tag, or rent a cheap truck and get stuck taking care of all the time-consuming, back-breaking details by yourself.

But there’s a lesser-known third option for moving that bridges the gap between a full-service move and a do-it-completely-yourself move. That lesser-known option is called a self-service move.

With a self-service move, you take care of the packing and loading, but a professional moving company does the driving. If you don’t mind doing some of the labor yourself, the self-service move option might be the right one for you.

Self-service move facts
The first thing you need to know about self-services moves is that there are two basic options.

The first option involves using a commercial trailer. With this option, the moving company delivers a large trailer to your home or apartment. You are then responsible for packing your items into the trailer. When you’re finished, the moving company picks up the trailer and transports it to your new home, where you do the unloading. Finally, the company picks up the trailer, and your move is complete.

The second type of self-service move works exactly the same way, but involves using a special container instead of a trailer. After you pack your container, it can be stored in a facility for as long as you need or delivered immediately to your new address.

Pros
There are several advantages of self-service moves. For many people, the main advantage is price. With a full-service move, your costs are usually determined by the weight of your goods. With a self-service move, you don’t have to worry about weight; you just need to fit your stuff into the trailer or container you reserve. Because there’s a lot less labor involved on the moving company’s side, these self-service moves are usually a few thousand dollars cheaper than full-service ones.

Another advantage of a self-service move is that it eliminates some of the stress of the moving timeline. You can take your time loading and unloading your trailer or container on your own schedule. There are limits on the amount of time you get to keep your trailer or container, but the time limits are typically generous. Some companies allow you to have a storage container for up to a month, for instance.

Another advantage of self-service moves is that they eliminate the hassle of driving a moving truck. There’s no need to worry about filling the truck up with gas, returning it when you’re finished, or navigating it through narrow roads or tricky parking spots. If you’re moving cross-country, that means spending less time in hotels and less money on meal costs.

Possible cons
It’s important to note that there a few downsides to self-service moving that may not make it the right choice for you. The most obvious downside is that you don’t get help loading and unloading your belongings.

The other disadvantage is related to space. If you go with a self-service trailer rental, you could end up sharing space on the trailer with other movers. The other family’s belongings will be partitioned off by a movable wall, but if you find that you need more space than your originally allotted amount, there might not be any more space in the trailer for you. You could end up being charged extra fees for going over your space limit.

If you think a self-service move is the right one for you, your next step should be to check out our Self-Service Move Checklist. This list will help you get the ball rolling on your to-do list.