Workers and activists in many parts of the world are celebrating the May 1st Labor Day on Monday with rallies calling for increased wages, reduced working hours and improved working conditions.
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In France, unions are planning mass demonstrations to protest President Emmanuel Macron’s recent move to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Organizers see the pension reform as a threat to workers’ rights and the French social security network.
The pension bill sparked the biggest protests in France in recent years, and the May 1st rallies are expected to be one of the biggest yet.
In England, nurses are on strike on Monday, demanding an increase in wages, with emergency, intensive care and oncology nurses also participating in the strike for the first time.
As in previous years, police in Turkey prevented a group of demonstrators from reaching Istanbul’s main Taksim Square and detained about a dozen protesters.
The square has symbolic significance for Turkish trade unions after unknown gunmen opened fire on people celebrating the holiday in the square in 1977, causing a stampede. Dozens of people died.
The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has banned demonstrations in Taksim Square, leading to frequent clashes between police and protesters trying to reach the square. Meanwhile, small groups were allowed to enter the square to lay wreaths at the monument.
In Pakistan, authorities banned rallies in some cities due to the tense security situation or political climate.
In South Korea, tens of thousands of people attended various rallies demanding an increase in the minimum wage.
In Tokyo, thousands of union members, opposition lawmakers and academics gathered in Yoyogi Park to demand higher wages to offset rising costs.
Union leaders point out that government measures to increase wages are lagging behind price increases. They criticize Prime Minister Fumio Kisida’s plan to double the defense budget and say the money should be spent on welfare, social security and improving people’s daily lives.
In Indonesia, protesters demanded the government repeal a job creation law that they say allows business to profit at the expense of workers and the environment.
In Germany, the protests began with a “Let’s Take Back the Night” rally organized by feminist and queer groups on the eve of the holiday to protest violence against women and LGBTQ+. Several thousand people took part in the march, which for the most part behaved peacefully, despite occasional clashes between participants and the police. Several rallies of trade unions and left-wing groups are planned in Germany on Monday.
2023-05-01 12:47:49
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