International Labour Day

 

International Labour Day

May 1 is the International Day of Workers or International Labour Day dedicated to workers and labourers across the world. It is marked with a public holiday in over 80 countries. May 1st is celebrated as May Day in most countries around the world. In many countries such as India, Bangladesh, Cuba, China, Germany and many more, it is is observed as a public holiday. This day is also marked as Antarrashtriya Shramik Diwas. In the United Kingdom and Ireland the bank holiday isn't fixed on May 1st but instead is observed on the first Monday of May. United states, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands celebrate Labour Day on different dates. May Day was first celebrated on 1 May, 1890 after it was declared by the first international congress of socialist parties in Europe on 14 July, 1889. It was declared for the workers in Paris to dedicate every year on 1 May as the "Workers Day of International Unity and Solidarity”. This day was initiated from the labour union movement, which supports eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation and eight hours for rest. 

Labour Day commemorates past labour struggles against workers’ rights violations, including lengthy workdays and weeks, poor conditions and child labour. Peter J. McGuire, a carpenter and labour union leader, was the person who came up with the idea for Labour Day. He thought American workers should be honoured with their own day. In India, May Day was first celebrated on May 1, 1923, after the Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan initiated and Comrade Singaravelar (Singaravelu Chettiar) helmed the celebrations. May 1 was chosen to be International Workers’ Day to commemorate the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago. The members of labour union carried out peaceful strike demanding working hours from fifteen to eight, proper wages and paid leaves, among others. However, the strike was met with bombings which led to many deaths. Many protesters were arrested and served faced terms of life imprisonment, death sentences. The incident is believed to have given the workers’ movement a great impetus. By the late 19th century, a legal working time of eight-hours was declared in Chicago’s national convention by the American Federation of Labour. Following this pronouncement, many countries including India adopted the eight-hour working policy. Labour unions and socialists come together to celebrate this day by conducting programs with an objective to improve working conditions wages and wages of the labour force.