Workers' Day (Labour Day): History, Meaning, Celebrations, Wish and Quotes

Kris [email protected] May 01, 2023 | 08:58

International Workers' Day or Labour Day is gonna be celebrated on this first day of May to honour the struggles and gains made by workers and labourers. Check out the history, facts and celebrations of this day around the world!

Workers' Day (Labour Day): History, Meaning, Celebrations, Wish and Quotes

Labour Day (May 1) Photo: Datamart

Labour Day or International Workers' Day is celebrated annually on 1 May to celebrate the working class and laborers across the world. Socialist and labor unions celebrate this day by organizing programs to improve wages and working conditions of the workforce. In more than 80 countries Labour Day is a national holiday.

International Workers' Day: History

The Haymarket Affair, which happened in Chicago on May 4, 1886, is credited with inspiring the creation of Labor Day. Workers gathered on this day as part of a nonviolent protest calling for an eight-hour workday. Seven police officers and at least four civilians were killed, along with dozens of others who were injured, when an unidentified person threw a dynamite bomb at the police as they tried to disperse the gathering.

Photo: Age of Revolution

On May 1, we now observe Labor Day in remembrance of the protests in Chicago. Many nations, including India, adopted an eight-hour workday as a result of these protests. The first Labor Day was observed in India on May 1, 1923, in Chennai. The Hindustani Labour Kisan Party organized it.

Why do we celebrate International Workers' Day?

On International Workers' Day or Labour Day, people advocate for fair labor practices and decent working conditions. Millions of people now enjoy fundamental rights and protections as a result of the long-term efforts of workers. People have the right to paid holidays and sick leave, there are restrictions on the number of hours they can work, and there are minimum wages in place.

Photo: WQAD

However, many situations' working conditions have gotten worse in recent years. Part-time, temporary, and poorly paid work have increased since the global financial crisis of 2008, and state pensions are in jeopardy.

The "gig economy," in which businesses hire workers sporadically for a single brief job at a time, has also grown. These employees lack the typical entitlements to paid holidays, the minimum wage, and redundancy compensation. It's crucial as ever to stand in solidarity with other workers.

How is International Workers' Day Observed?

Photo: Wiki

The International Labour Organization (ILO), a branch of the United Nations, works to raise the living and working conditions for people everywhere. The International Labor Organization (ILO) organizes protests and marches on May 1 every year to raise awareness of issues like migrant workers' rights, minimum wage laws, and forced labor.

10 Facts about International Workers' Day (Labour Day)

#1. On May 1, 1886, workers across the country took to the streets in a significant battle to change the 12-hour workday across the globe to the current eight-hour workday. This is supposedly the first May Day that has ever been observed. However, International Workers' Day was created following the Haymarket incident to protest workplace harassment and retaliation. The strange thing is that not many Americans are aware of May Day; later, it was decided that Labor Day would be observed annually on the first Monday in September. Naturally, Canada also observes this day as a national holiday.

#2. There is some debate over who first suggested the holiday for workers, but according to some records, Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was the one to first suggest a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold." But many think that the holiday was actually proposed in 1882 by machinist Matthew Maguire, who at the time was the secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York.

#3. Hundreds of countries around the world have recognized International Workers' Day, although only about 60 actually celebrate the holiday.

#4. The U.N.’s International Labor Organization has found that as the population of the world approaches 7 billion people, 3 billion are employed and about 240 million are unemployed.

#5. According to the ILO, despite the 2008 crisis, the rate of unemployment has been between 5.8 percent and 5.9 percent as a worldwide average this century. This percentage is expected to remain the same through 2019. Even though this means that 61 million more people will be unemployed, some 220 million more jobs will have been created.

#6. An estimated 30 million people suffer modern-day slavery conditions, generating some US$32 billion in profit yearly for those involved in human trafficking.

#7. There are more than 200 million children working around the world today, with 120 million engaged in hazardous work. Seventy-three million of these children are under 10 years old.

#8. International Workers' Day began in Chicago as a protest campaign in support of the eight-hour workday.

#9. The World Bank estimates that there are roughly 3.4 billion people in the world's labor force, with just over 2 billion men, 1.4 billion women, and 560,000 young people. The World Bank estimates that by 2030, the total labor force will rise to just over 4 billion people, with 2.4 billion men and 1.6 billion women, while the youth labor force will have increased by only about 40,000, to just under 600,000.

#10. According to one rough estimate, the world average wage probably lies around US$1,200 purchasing power parity per month, although in many countries this is completely untrue as workers receive salaries below US$100.

International Workers' Day Message and Quotes:

1. Wishing you a Happy workers Day, Work is not man's punishment.

It is his reward and his strength and his pleasure

There is no definition of a good day or a bad day.

It all depends on you and your thoughts that Either You run the day.

Photo: Pinterest

2. To Every Single people who searching for a Job or a Better Job to Survive, God will come through for you all this month of May. May Day and happy workers day!!

3. To all those who keep their country running, rising above the limiting environment, going beyond the call of duty just to ensure some degree of productivity and functionality, a big THANK YOU! You're our heroes. May your labour not be in vain.

Photo: Flying Calls

4. Your days of toiling without results are over! As you work, you will earn in multiples of your efforts... And you will be blessed with good health to enjoy the rewards of your labor. Happy Labour Day!!

5. It is God who ultimately rewards every hard work; so, work to please Him! Wish you Happy workers Day!