8 Things That You May Not Know About Labour Day

Most of us know that International Workers' Day, also known as Labour Day, is celebrated across the world on May 1 to honour the working class and acknowledge its contribution to society. It is not uncommon on this day to hear heart-wrenching speeches of social workers and human rights champions showing solidarity with the working class.

For some, May 1 brings happiness every year as it's a government holiday. However, there is a lot more to the occasion than most of us actually know. PropGuide lists eight interesting facts about the day and how it has evolved over the years.

The beginning: On May 1, 1886, about 400,000 workers, supported by their champions, staged a strike in Chicago to call for the daily work shift to be reduced from 10 hours or more to eight hours. The four-day protest, which turned violent, killing and wounding many strikers, later got the name of 'the Haymarket Square affair'. To honour the participants of the protest, the International Socialist Conference declared this day as the International Workers' Day and made it a holiday at a meeting in 1889.

Loyalty Day: To snub the so-called social propaganda of the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics during the Cold War, US President Dwight D Eisenhower declared May 1 as 'Loyalty' or 'Law Day'. The government declared it “a special day for the reaffirmation of loyalty to the United States of America, and for the recognition of the heritage of American freedom”.

Feast day of St Joseph: There have been several alleged attempts to undermine the “struggling” nature of the occasion by giving it a religious or patriotic tone. In 1955, for example, Pope Pius XII renamed the day as the 'Feast Day of St Joseph the Worker'.

Other Labour Days: While May 1 is celebrated as a holiday by governments across the world, the US and Canada have their official holiday for workers on the first Monday of September. While the day is not recognised in Israel, it is a paid holiday in that country.

Earth festival: As the myth goes, the origin of the earth festival is rooted in the old traditions of earth worship in India and Egypt. However, in its modern form, the occasion was first celebrated in India in 1923 in the erstwhile Madras, when Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan leader Singaravelu Chettiar organised two functions in the city, urging the government at the Centre to declare the day 'Labour' Day. He also called upon the workers' community to unite for their overall welfare.

State Days: The states of Gujarat and Maharashtra celebrate May 1 as Gujarat Diwas and Maharashra Diwas, respectively. These states had come into being on the same day in 1960, when the Bombay state was bifurcated on the basis of linguistic preferences.

A day for dance and merrymaking? A day that later became important for the working class was in fact a day to perform 'Maypole Dance' in the Spring, as part of folk festivals across Europe, especially German Europe, since medieval times. According to the old custom, the pole symbolises the masculine power, while the flowers used to decorate are the depiction of feminine beauty. Despite many bans due to the libidinous nature of the festival – the festival signified abundance and fertility – this tradition came back over and over and is still in vogue.

Bringing in the May: The Italians regard Festa del lavoro, as they call May Day, as the happiest day of the year. There are many country festivals to mark the occasion. Earlier, Rome celebrated the festival of Floralia, a festival that honored Flora, the goddess of springtime. This explains why this would have been the happiest day in that country. The UK has an old tradition of celebrating the happy occasion by people venturing into collecting greenery and flower home, calling it 'Bringing in the May'.