The history of this holiday dates back to the late 1800s in the United States, when a fierce confrontation took place between employers and workers over poor working conditions and the number of hours employees had to work daily.
On May 1, 1886, American workers went on strike in Chicago demanding an eight-hour working day. The eight-hour movement brought together and united workers of all nationalities in protests. The strike and subsequent demonstrations resulted in deadly clashes with police.
Even though the US didn't introduce what the protestors demanded until the 20th century, the movement did inspire workers from all over the world to fight for their rights.
In July 1889, the Paris Congress of the Second International in commemoration of the 1886 protests decided to hold annual demonstrations on May 1. For the first time, the day of international solidarity of workers was celebrated in 1890 in Belgium, Germany, Denmark, the US, Norway, France, and other countries.
For a long time, May Day was a symbol of revolution, an irreconcilable class struggle, and had a distinct political coloring. Especially in the USSR, it was marked by demonstrations with portraits of political figures and leaders, slogans and posters, which praised achievements in the national economy, science and culture.
Africa's Celebrations on May Day
Today, Workers' Day is celebrated in more than 140 countries and territories around the world on May 1 or the first Monday in May. And Africa is no exception. In most of the states, Workers' Day is not a political holiday, but a bright spring celebration with festivals, performances, fairs, peaceful processions and many other entertainment events under the theme of solidarity between workers.
This year, people almost all over the continent marked May Day, in some countries observed as Labor Day, with rallies calling for higher wages, reduced working hours and improvements in other working conditions.
In particular, in South Africa workers across the nation went on peaceful rallies to commemorate the holiday, while many labor unions highlighted the importance of continuing the struggle for better working conditions.
The first recorded celebration of Workers' Day in South Africa occurred in 1895. It was initiated by the Johannesburg District Trades Council. In 1994, Workers’ Day was proclaimed as an official national public holiday after the first democratic multiracial elections. In South Africa, celebrations hold a specific meaning as they serve as a reminder of the role labor unions played in the fight against apartheid.
On this day, the country's President Cyril Ramaphosa took the podium to address the workers gathered at the stadium in Bethlehem, in the eastern Free State province. He noted that the country is experiencing difficult times, referring to various economic issues and the energy crisis. He highlighted that the only way the nation can overcome these difficulties is to stay united and work together for the sake of a better future.
"Much as Workers' Day is taking place today during a very difficult time for our country, we want to say that, yes, issues such as poverty, unemployment, inequality are challenges that can only be effectively addressed if we, as the alliance, continue working together, if we, as the alliance, continue holding hands to ensure that the ideals set out in the national democratic revolution are indeed achieved," the president said.
Tanzanian workers also joined the rest of the world to mark May Day. During celebrations and various public discussions, the participants touched upon such topics as pay rises, payment of salary arrears, better working conditions and employment contracts.
The president of the Trade Union Congress of Tanzania, Tumaini Nyamhokya, stated that the organization looks to continue demanding better pay and decent jobs. He noted that a major issue of concern is that some employers failed to implement the pay rise this January and workers still haven’t been paid various arrears.
The country's President Samia Suluhu Hassan graced this year’s celebrations held at Jamhuri Stadium in Morogoro under the theme "Better Salaries and Decent Jobs are the Pillars of Workers’ Development."
"We’re resuming annual salary increments which were initially frozen. We will restart this year and hope to do the same moving forward," the president announced during her address to the nation.
As for Nigeria, the country also marked this year's International Workers' Day, dedicated to laborers' rights and socio-economic justice, by celebrations at national level. In the capital of Abuja, workers and other officials gathered on Eagle Square to commemorate the day and discuss the conditions of working class in the West African state.
In a joint address, the country's labor unions underscored that workers' well-being is central to the achievement of socio-economic justice, with the latter being critical to national development and progress.
"Equity, fairness and justice underpin the survival of societies and create resilience for Nations amid upheavals and turbulence," the statement read, as cited by local media.