Happy International Workers' Day
From Railroad Workers United!
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May 1st is a celebration of the international labor movement and is recognized as a national holiday in more than 80 countries worldwide. It is celebrated unofficially in many others, including the United States. In fact, May Day -- as it is commonly known – got its start here in the United States in the 1880s with a pathbreaking and historical strike for the eight-hour day.
International Workers' Day is the commemoration of the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago. Police attempted to disperse a peaceful assembly of workers during a general strike for the eight-hour workday, when an unidentified person threw a bomb. The police reacted by firing on the workers, killing a number of protestors. Organizers of the demonstration were charged with murder, though no evidence was ever found linking them to the bombing. Four of them – known as the “Haymarket Martyrs” were hanged the following year.
In 1889, the first congress of the Second International Workingmen’s Association, meeting in Paris on the centennial of the French Revolution, called for international labor demonstrations on the 1890 anniversary of the Chicago protests. Then, in 1891, May Day was formally recognized as an annual event at the International's Second Congress. In subsequent years, the working class in many countries sought to make May Day an official holiday, and their efforts largely succeeded.
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In the United States and Canada, however, the official holiday for workers is Labor Day in September. This day was promoted by the Central Labor Union and the Knights of Labor, who organized the first parade in New York City. After the Haymarket Incident in Chicago, U.S. President Grover Cleveland feared that commemorating Labor Day on May 1 could become an opportunity to commemorate the affair. Thus he pushed for U.S. Labor Day to be the first Monday in September.
In the United States, efforts to officially switch Labor Day back to the international date of May 1 have been unsuccessful. However, a number of unions and locals — especially in urban areas with strong support for organized labor — have maintained a connection with labor traditions through their own unofficial observances on May 1. Some of the largest examples of this occurred during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when hundreds of thousands of workers marched in May Day parades in New York's Union Square. Groups have kept the May Day tradition alive with rallies and demonstrations in such cities as New York, Chicago and Seattle, often with major union backing.
Today, May 1, 2023, working people all over the world — including millions here in North America — will once again celebrate International Workers' Day. As railroaders, we celebrate the dignity of all workers as we consider working conditions in our own industry. The widespread negative effects of Precision Schedule Railroading (PSR) are becoming well known now to millions of Americans. Rails have been sounding the alarm and educating the media, politicians and the public about the unsafe and irresponsible practices of the rail industry, including the folly of long and heavy trains, the relentless profit-centered attempts to implement one-person crews; the damaging budget and staffing cuts, the lack of proper maintenance and inspection, and the flight of workers from the rail industry due to unsatisfactory working conditions.
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We have reason for hope and celebration. The potential for rail union unity, solidarity, and a more action oriented approach appears to be at hand! Collectively we have managed to put the big rail carriers on the defensive. PSR might be on the way out thanks to workers' efforts to expose it for the farce that it is. A universal coalition of all rail labor can emerge. And this is all happening in the broader context of one of the most ambitious strike waves in recent history along with extraordinary (and increasingly successful) unionization drives at deeply exploitative, low-wage employers like Amazon and Starbucks. A new generation of labor activists is using innovating organizing strategies highlighting the best of what ordinary, rank and file workers can achieve.
The spirit of working class resistance and rebellion is alive and well. Check the links below for resources and take part in local May Day activities in your area as we celebrate our day - International Workers' Day!
In solidarity,
Railroad Workers United
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Railroad Workers United
Solidarity -- Unity -- Democracy
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