09/07/2026
Labor Day is a reminder that Florida’s strength is built by people who show up, do the work, and take pride in a job well done.
That includes the teachers who open classrooms before dawn, the bus drivers and custodians who keep our schools running, the counselors and career instructors who help a student see a path they did not know existed, and the faculty and staff of our Florida College System who turn ambition into a credential and a paycheck. It includes the men and women of our Department who serve more than two million learners from early learning through adult education, vocational rehabilitation, and the skilled trades.
Florida is number one in the nation in workforce education because we treat work as a calling or a vocation, not an afterthought. Record numbers of students are in career and technical education. More than 25,000 Floridians are active apprentices and pre-apprentices, earning while they learn. We are building a system in which a diploma, a certificate, or a Registered Apprenticeship is a door to a high-wage career—not a dead end.
On this Labor Day, I wanted to thank every educator, administrator, employee, and worker who makes that possible. Dignity in work is not a slogan. It is the promise we owe our students and the standard we set for ourselves.
Have a safe and restful holiday. Tomorrow, we get back to the work of preparing Florida’s next generation of workers, citizens, and leaders.
-Commissioner Henry Mack
