CLOSED: LCB May Contest: International Workers' Day

This is the setting for what is generally considered Canada’s first Labour Day event in 1872. At the time, unions were illegal in Canada. Inspired by workers in Hamilton who had begun the movement for a nine-hour work day, the Toronto printers threatened to strike if their demands weren’t met. After repeatedly being ignored by their employers, the workers took bold action and on April 14, a group of 2,000 workers marched through the streets in a show of solidarity. They picked up even more supporters along the way and by the time they reached their destination of Queen’s Park, their parade had 10,000 participants – one tenth of the city’s population. Their strike proved that workers could gain the attention of their employers, the public, and most importantly, their political leaders if they worked together. The “Nine-Hour Movement,” as it became known, spread to other Canadian cities and a shorter work week became the primary demand of union workers in the years following the Toronto strike.The parades demonstrated solidarity, with different unions identified by the colorful banners they carried. In 1894, under mounting pressure from the working class, Prime Minister Sir John Thompson declared Labour Day a national holiday.

May 1, 1959 in East and West Berlin, so close but so different...

“Workers of the World Unite!” Armed Parade on May Day in East Berlin; May 1, 1959

“Berlin Remains Free” May Day Demonstration in West Berlin; May 1, 1959

1947 May Day demonstration on the streets of Tel-Aviv

May 1, 2013, Israel

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May Day Rally in Berlin Germany 1919. After the Emperor's resignation and the introduction of parliamentary democracy, this was the first time this day could be celebrated without opposition from the police. Here is the socialist youth.

2014, Indonesia, Labour Day in Jakarta

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2015 Labour Day in the Republic of Vanuatu

SMay Day in Tokyo, Japan; May 1, 1946

In 1945, Japan had a Communist party which often use May Day to demonstrate. This photo was taken just one year after Tokyo was subjected to one of the most destructive fire bombings in history.

General Workers Union and Commisiones Obreras at La Constitucion Square during a May Day demonstration on Labor Day in Malaga, Southern Spain, May 1, 2014.

The banner reads,

"Without quality employment, there is no recovery. More social cohesion for more democracy."

Good Luck to All!

2Late4Me

May 1, 2015, in Myanmar.

Workers laugh in the crowd on May Day in Peking, China; May 1, 1960

Zurich, Switzerland, May 1st 1967. In the 1960's issues and demands included the countries of origin of migrant workers.

May Day protesters in Malaysia

Here's another submission for you.

history

1950, May Day demonstration in Budapest

Families at May Day in Prague, Czechoslovakia, during May 1, 1960

Osaka, Japan, May 1st 1921

A high school girls’ militia marches on May Day holding Cuban flags

Great content from everybody in this thread so far! Awesome to see so many images from around the world! :-)

My entry for today:

MayDay activists protesting in Iran

May Day is celebrated in over 80 countries, usually with mass rallies and in many countries a paid day off from work. Though public gatherings for May Day are not occurring this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you can still celebrate the holiday by honoring the picket lines of workers at Amazon, Target, Instacart, FedEx, and Whole Foods, who are striking today.

Workers are demanding “compensation for all unpaid time off used since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis in March; hazard pay or paid sick leave to be provided for the duration of the pandemic; protective equipment and all cleaning supplies to be provided at all times by the company; and a demand for full corporate transparency on the number of cases in facilities.

May Day is all about worldwide worker solidarity.  Solidarity with these struggling frontline workers is in the best spirit of our May Day holiday.

Amazing photos so far :) The contest is not over yet, but I can tell I'm going to have a hard time choosing the best, as they are all great! 

Miner at the contests at the Labor Day celebration – Silverton, Colorado (1940). He won the power drilling contest.

Miners with their children at the Labor Day celebration, Silverton, Colorado

May Day celebration, Cuba 1961

May Day NY

MayDay parade in Bolivia led by president Evo Morales

Yes some workers specially working outside the country is heroes for me because they sacrifies to ne with family for future and work to far 

International Workers Day, Madrid, Spain, 1979

Day of workers’ wrath

At the beginning of the last century workers went on May Day demonstrations to demand fair working conditions, often risking a bullet in the neck.

May 1 became International Labor Day after the tragedy at Haymarket Square in Chicago, Illinois, USA. In early May 1886, demonstrations were held in Chicago and other US cities demanding an eight-hour working day. It might seem a no-brainer today, but in the late 19th century many tycoons did not believe that workers had the right to sleep.

May Day Protests against the Kim regime in North Korea

Iranians celebrate International Workers Day, Tehran, Iran

Historic photo from MayDay in Greece where labourers protest and march for their rights

The delegation of Vietnam on May 1, 1968, during the labour day demonstration organized by CGT and the Communist Party in Paris, France.

MayDay celebrations and marches in Albania. Awesome parade with lots of bright colors and the feel of summer in the air. Really festive and inviting. But of course for an important cause!

If ending WWII is considered International work then this 2nd entry of mine would be iconic to celebrate with this photo. Just putting this out there!

Greta Zimmer Friedman kissing a sailor (George Mendonsa) in Times Square in 1945

Fun Fact: The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City

When is Commerce Day?  Or as we know it....May Day.....Labor Day..... 

Commerce Day is a public holiday in Iceland and is always celebrated on the first Monday in August. 

This holiday may also be called Tradesmen's Day or the Holiday of the Merchants.

In Icelandic, it is called Fridagur verslunarmanna. 

History of Commerce Day

This holiday was first observed Thursday September 13th, 1894.  The date is known as it was agreed on at a meeting of unions and managers from the larger shops in Reykjavík.  The idea to give commercial workers a day off in the summer came from Denmark but has been lost as a modern tradition there. 

Having the same days off for industrial workers was a more common tradition in Europe as manufacturers may depend on several suppliers for parts, so it made sense that everyone was off at the same time. 

For shop workers and tradesmen, this shared holiday wasn't as necessary, so Commerce Day is a considerate holiday for those who work hard to serve us all year round. 

As a long weekend in the summer, it proved a popular holiday and over the coming years the day shifted around between September and August before the first Monday in August was chosen as the date in 1931. 

These days, the long weekend created by Commerce Day is known in Icelandic as 'Verslunarmannahelgi' which means 'merchants’ weekend' and is a popular time for festivals and celebrations across Iceland. The largest and most well-known outdoor festival is the Þjóðhátíð, held on the Westman Islands. 

On this public holiday, most stores are closed. If a store stays open it has to pay employees a holiday surcharge.

May 1st, 1957, Beijing China, a parade to celebrate International workers day on Tiananmen Square marking the start of the one of the countries three "Golden Weeks".

Here's a picture of a decorated floral coach on MayDay in downtown Helsinki, the year is 1912.

Thanks again for a great contest, LCB! :-)

Workers around the world in different eras and regions, during hard labor and slavery times, while struggling to survive, and before the endorsement and recognition of Labour Day.

This has been an exciting, knowledgeble and memorable contest. 

Good Luck to All!

2Late4Me 

Lmao!

Lmao!

I wrote my first post for this May contest with the famous photo, "Lunch atop a skyscraper".

Then, I found some more interesting pictures and video clip about it.

I share it here, and you enjoy it :)

https://youtu.be/7QCYDzsQ_yM

The History of May Day and Labor Day Animated Guide

https://youtu.be/6hvQtGU0_pA

This would be my final entry! My wittiness wasn't created until many many years later.

So what is May day anyway? May day history goes back to the 19th century. Some historians say that Peter J McGuire suggested celebrating the Labor day after seeing the annual labor festival held in Toronto.

In 1887, Portland Oregon was the First US State to celebrate it as an official holiday. The US started celebrating it as an official holiday throughout all US states by 1894

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Here's a funny one as my last entry.

A dog riding a bicycle dressed in a T-shirt saying "Long Live May 1st" during a Guatemalan Celebration on May 1st, 2000.

Thank you all for taking part in this month's contest!

The results will be announced shortly. 

The winners are:

1st - $100 ChiricoSales 

2nd - $75 tinka5555

3rd - $60 laurentr3865

4th - $50 MTCash 

5th - $45 aelen

6th - $40 ironjack18

7th – $30 princejuju 

8th – Video Poker App KAITLINP96 

9th – Video Poker App Robertoed Manning

10th – Video Poker App Alexa333

Congratulations! 

Poker app winners, please PM what phone you're using. 

Wow. I won a prize . Thank you Lcb and congratulations to all winners

Wow thanks! :) I PM'd you

Awesome, thanks so much LCB! I really appreciate it.

congrats to all the winners!!  enjoy  :)

TO ALL WINNERS---GOOD JOB

Thank you for sharing!

2Late4Me