International Workers' Day, also called Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of labourers, the labour movement and the working class that is marked every year on 1 May, or the first Monday in May.
Traditionally, 1 May is the date of the European spring festival of May Day. The International Workers Congress held in Paris in 1889 established the Second International for labor, socialist, and Marxist parties. It adopted a resolution for a "great international demonstration" in support of working-class demands for the eight-hour day. The date was chosen by the American Federation of Labor to commemorate a general strike in the United States, which had begun on 1 May 1886 and culminated in the Haymarket affair on 4 May. The demonstration subsequently became a yearly event. The 1904 Sixth Conference of the Second International, called on "all Social Democratic Party organisations and trade unions of all countries to demonstrate energetically on the First of May for the legal establishment of the eight-hour day, for the class demands of the proletariat, and for universal peace".
The 1st of May, or first Monday in May, is a national public holiday in many countries, in most cases known as "International Workers' Day" or a similar name. Some countries celebrate a Labour Day on other dates significant to them, such as the United States and Canada, which celebrate Labor Day on the first Monday of September. In 1955, the Catholic Church dedicated 1 May to "Saint Joseph the Worker". Replacing another feast of St. Joseph, this date was chosen by Pope Pius XII in 1955 as a counterpoint to the communist International Workers' Day celebrations on May Day. Saint Joseph is the patron saint of workers and craftsmen, among others.
Origin Labor celebration days have existed in some European countries since the end of the 18th centuryFranck Ferrand, « L'histoire du 1er mai» on europe1.fr , May 1st 2013. – sometimes on January 20th (France, 1793)See the sur le calendrier républicain on French Wikisource. or on June 5th (France, 1867)..
On 21 April 1856, Australian stonemasons in Victoria undertook a mass stoppage as part of the eight-hour workday movement. It became a yearly commemoration, inspiring American workers to have their first stoppage. 1 May was chosen to be International Workers' Day to commemorate the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago. In that year beginning on 1 May, there was a general strike for the eight-hour workday. On 4 May, the police acted to disperse a public assembly in support of the strike when an unidentified person threw a bomb. The police responded by firing on the workers. The event led to the deaths of seven police officers and at least four civilians; sixty police officers were injured, as were one hundred and fifteen civilians. Hundreds of labour leaders and sympathizers were later rounded-up and four were executed by hanging, after a trial that was seen as a miscarriage of justice. The following day on 5 May, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the state militia fired on a crowd of strikers killing seven, including a schoolboy and a man feeding chickens in his yard.
In 1889, the first meeting of the Second International was held in Paris, following a proposal by that called for international demonstrations on the 1890 anniversary of the Chicago protests. On 1 May 1890, demonstrations took place in the United States and most countries in Europe. Demonstrations were also held in Chile and Peru. International Workers' Day was formally recognized as an annual event at the International's second congress in 1891. Subsequently, the May Day riots of 1894 occurred. The International Socialist Congress, Amsterdam 1904 called on "all Social Democratic Party organisations and trade unions of all countries to demonstrate energetically on the First of May for the legal establishment of the 8-hour day, for the class demands of the proletariat, and for universal peace." The congress made it "mandatory upon the proletarian organisations of all countries to stop work on 1 May, wherever it is possible without injury to the workers."From the diary of Anatoly Vasilyevich Lunacharsky; 1 May 1918; Petrograd
In the United States and Canada, a September holiday, called Labor or Labour Day, was first proposed in the 1880s. In 1882, Matthew Maguire, a machinist, first proposed a Labor Day holiday on the first Monday of September while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union (CLU) of New York. Others argue that it was first proposed by Peter J. McGuire of the American Federation of Labor in May 1882, after witnessing the annual labour festival held in Toronto, Canada. In 1887, Oregon was the first state of the United States to make it an official public holiday. By the time it became an official federal holiday in 1894, thirty US states officially celebrated Labor Day. Thus by 1887 in North America, Labour Day was an established, official holiday but in September,Knights of Labor. Progressive Historians (3 September 2007). not on 1 May.
International Workers' Day has also been a focal point for demonstrations by various socialist, communist and anarchist groups since the Second International. It is one of the most important holidays in communist countries such as China, Vietnam, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and the former Soviet Union countries. Celebrations in these countries typically feature elaborate workforce parades, including displays of military hardware and soldiers.
In 1955, the Catholic Church dedicated 1 May to "Saint Joseph the Worker". Saint Joseph is the patron saint of workers and craftsmen, among others.
Today, the majority of countries around the world celebrate a workers' day on 1 May.
Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc under socialist governments
Eastern Bloc countries such as the Soviet Union and most countries of central and eastern Europe that were under the rule of Marxist–Leninist governments held official Workers' Day celebrations in every town and city, during which party leaders greeted the crowds. Workers carried banners with political slogans and many companies decorated their company cars. The biggest celebration of 1 May usually occurred in the capital of a particular socialist country and usually included a military display and the presence of the president and the secretary general of the party. During the Cold War, International Workers' Day became the occasion for large military parades in Red Square by the Soviet Union and attended by the top leaders of the Kremlin, especially the Politburo, atop Lenin's Mausoleum. It became an enduring symbol of that period. In Poland, since 1982, party leaders led the official parades. In Hungary, International Workers' Day was officially celebrated under the communist rule, and remains a public holiday. Traditionally, the day was marked by dancing around designated "May trees". Some factories in socialist countries were named in honour of International Workers' Day, such as 1 Maja Coal Mine in , Poland. In East Germany, the holiday was officially known as ("International Day of the Struggle and Celebration of the Workers for Peace and Socialism"); similar names were used in other Eastern Bloc countries.
By country
Africa Algeria In Algeria, 1 May is a public holiday celebrated as Worker's Day.
Angola 1 May is recognized as public holiday in Angola and called Workers' Day.
Egypt
In Egypt, 1 May is known as Labour Day and is considered a paid holiday. The President of Egypt traditionally presides over the celebrations.
Ethiopia
In Ethiopia, 1 May is a public holiday and celebrated as Worker's Day. May day was most often celebrated under the previous government of the Derg and the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
Ghana 1 May is a holiday in Ghana. It is a day to celebrate all workers across the country. It is celebrated with a parade by trade unions and labour associations. The parades are normally addressed by the Secretary General of the trade union congress and by regional secretaries in the regions. Workers from different workplaces through banners and T-shirts identify their companies.
Kenya In Kenya, 1 May is a public holiday and celebrated as Labour Day. It is a big day addressed by the leaders of the workers' umbrella union body – the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU). The Cabinet Secretary in charge of Ministry of Labour and Social Protection (and occasionally the president) address the workers. Each year, the government approves (and increases) the minimum wage on Labour Day.
Libya In Libya, International Workers' Day was declared a national public holiday by the National Transitional Council in 2012 the first year of the post-Qaddafi era.The transitional government on Tuesday announced a public holiday in all parts of Libya on the occasion of International Workers' Holiday. The Libyan government transition – Prime Minister's Office (in Arabic). On 1 May 1978, then Libyan leader Colonel Mu'ammar Al-Qaddafi addressed the nation in the capital city of Tripoli calling for administrative and also economic reforms across Libya. Mathaba News Network – Archive: Democracy in Industry. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
Mauritius In Mauritius, 1 May is a public holiday celebrated as Labour Day. It was celebrated for the first time in Mauritius on 1 May 1938, and for the first time as an official public holiday on 1 May 1950. This was thanks largely to the efforts of Guy Rozemont, Dr. Maurice Curé, Pandit Sahadeo and Emmanuel Anquetil, as a day of special significance for Mauritian workers who for many years had struggled for their social, political and economic rights.Labour Day Mauritius Times article by TP Saran|
Morocco In Morocco, 1 May is recognized as a public holiday.
Mozambique Mozambique celebrates International Workers' Day on 1 May.
Namibia 1 May is recognized as public holiday in Namibia and celebrated as Workers' Day.
Nigeria Since 1981, 1 May is a public holiday in Nigeria. On the day, people gather while, traditionally, the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress and other politicians address workers.
Somalia In Somalia, 1 May is a public holiday and celebrated as Labour Day.
South Africa In South Africa, Workers' Day has been celebrated as a national public holiday on 1 May each year since 1995. Workers' Day started to get more attention by African workers in 1928, which saw thousands of workers in a mass march. In 1950, the South African Communist Party called for a strike on 1 May in response to the Suppression of Communism Act declaring it illegal. Police violence caused the death of 18 people across Soweto. It has its origins within the historical struggles of workers and their trade unions internationally for solidarity between working people in their struggles to win fair employment standards and more importantly, to establish a culture of human and worker rights and to ensure that these are enshrined in international law and the national law.