May Day deeply rooted in collective action and engagement

May Day, International Workers’ Day, on May 1st, is internationally recognized. It is rooted in the collective action of American workers for an eight-hour workday.

“The labour movement has a long history of collective action,” says Chris Watson, President of the New Brunswick Federation of Labour. “The rights that we enjoy today as workers were earned by the workers who came before us.”

May day commemorates when workers from across the United States took to the streets in a general strike in May 1886. In Chicago, workers joined others already on strike or locked out, including the workers at the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company plant. By the time of the general strike, there were already several hundred police officers stationed outside the plant to keep the peace. After a rally, a group of striking workers surged toward the plant gates towards the replacement workers coming off their shift. The police fired into the crowd, killing 2 workers.

The next evening, people gathered to protest police violence and reiterate demands for an eight-hour workday. Police descended on the rally. As police marched towards the workers, someone threw a homemade bomb in their path, killing at least one officer. Police opened fire and, while it is unknown if anyone fired back, seven policemen and at least four workers died. One police official, speaking anonymously, told the Chicago Tribune that it was most likely the police killed each other.

This collective action set the stage for achieving an eight-hour workday as well as gaining other rights. It also led to the creation of May Day in 1890. In Canada, we started celebrating this day in 1906.

“Like in the past, unions are only as strong as the collective action and engagement of their members,” adds Watson. “Together we can work to improve the safety and quality of life of workers.”

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For information, contact:
Chris Watson
President, New Brunswick Federation of Labour
(506) 381-8969