The holiday has officially become the most expensive on record
TALLAHASSEE— After the most expensive August on record for gas and with gas prices surging this week, Florida’s working families and seniors are feeling the burn as Labor Day weekend becomes the most expensive Labor Day on record. A traditionally affordable long weekend is now an unaffordable luxury for the few. Two men are to blame: Byron Donalds and Donald Trump.
“Your Labor Day cookout has become the latest casualty in their agenda. What used to be a modest, affordable tradition is now squeezing household budgets already stretched thin. That’s a price tag Byron Donalds and Donald Trump should have to answer for,” stated Lisa Zayas, Deputy Communications Director for Florida Watch.
“Byron Donalds has shown time and again that he has no intention of making life more affordable for Florida’s families and seniors. By supporting Trump’s agenda — imposing tariffs that we all pay for, starting a needless war with no end in sight, giving tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy, and voting in favor of the largest healthcare cost increase in history — Donalds champions policies that are hitting us at the checkout counter, while helping the rich get richer,” stated Zayas.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, ground beef prices are up 9%, fruits and vegetables 5.1%, hot dogs 6.3%, and steaks almost 10% from July 2025.The price of gas is projected to reach $4.03 a gallon, 87 cents higher than in 2025 and the highest Labor Day price at the pump on record.
“It is tough to wrap your head around how a holiday meant to celebrate the working class has become so unaffordable. We are all left trying to balance the desire to make summer memories at a traditional family cookout with the reality of having to decide whether we can afford Byron’s Big-Ticket Barbecue.”
“Floridians deserve better than Byron Donalds. We need people in office who are focused on providing real solutions to the affordability crisis hardworking Floridians are facing: lowering costs, raising salaries, and creating the Florida we can all afford and deserve- and that isn’t Byron Donalds,” said Zayas.
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| Florida Watch is a communications and research organization that serves as the progressive community’s in-state hub for message development, digital communications, and research. Florida Watch keeps an eye on everything that goes on in our state to hold our elected officials accountable when they support laws and policies that make it harder for everyday Floridians to be healthy, prosperous, and safe.You can follow along with Florida Watch on social media on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. |