May Day

What Is May Day?

Every May 1st is "May Day." Known as a festival of working people, it is marked around the world with rallies and marches calling for better working conditions and workers' rights. Its origins lie in the large-scale strikes held on May 1, 1886, in Chicago and elsewhere in the United States, when workers demanded an eight-hour workday. At a time when 12- to 14-hour days were not unusual, the idea of "eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, and eight hours for what we will" became a rallying slogan.

How May Day Became an International Day

May Day is also a record of the long effort to improve harsh working conditions and secure a more humane way of life.

• Becoming an international workers' day: In 1889, the founding congress of the Second International in Paris resolved to make May 1st a day of solidarity for workers worldwide. The following year, on May 1, 1890, the first international May Day was held in many European countries and the United States.
• The eight-hour day as an international standard: In 1919, the International Labour Organization (ILO) adopted its very first convention, the Hours of Work (Industry) Convention, which limited working hours to eight a day and 48 a week.
• Roots in a springtime festival: "May Day" originally referred to the European festival welcoming the coming of summer. In modern times, the name of this seasonal festival also came to mean a day for workers.

May Day in Japan

Japan's May Day also has a history of more than 100 years.

• The first one was on May 2nd: Japan's first May Day organized by labor groups was held on Sunday, May 2, 1920, in Tokyo's Ueno Park. About 10,000 workers gathered to call for an eight-hour workday, protection from unemployment, and a minimum wage law. From the following year, it was held on May 1st.
• Suspension and revival: May Day was banned from 1936 and revived after the war in 1946. Today's labor federations still number their rallies counting from 1920.

Interesting Facts About May Day

• Is "May Day" the same as the distress signal? The radio distress call "Mayday" is said to come from the French phrase "m'aider" ("help me"), and has a different origin from May 1st's May Day.
• France's lily of the valley: In France, it's customary on May 1st to give lily of the valley (muguet) to family and friends. With Labor Day and Lily of the Valley Day falling on the same date, bunches of the flower sold on street corners are a familiar early-summer sight.
• May Day as a public holiday: May 1st is a public holiday in many countries across Europe, Asia, and beyond. It's not a national holiday in Japan, but labor unions hold rallies every year.
• Rallies on a different day: In Japan, some labor federations hold their main rally on a holiday before May 1st so that people who work on weekdays can take part.

Tips for Spending May Day

• Using "eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, eight hours for yourself" as a guide, take a look at the balance between how you work and how you rest. Give yourself permission to shake off the fatigue built up over the past month.
• Say "thank you" to your colleagues, or to the people in service jobs who support your daily life. It's a chance to remember that work is built on mutual support.
• Use "your own time" to try a new hobby or a bit of learning. A fulfilling life outside work gives you more breathing room.
• Following the French tradition, display lily of the valley or other seasonal flowers, and take a moment to go easy on the working you.

The Sweat and Dedication of Working People Move Society Forward, Little by Little

May 1st is a day to think about everyone whose work supports society. Even the small, unglamorous tasks you handle every day support someone's life and solve someone's problem. Just as people raised their voices for an eight-hour day more than a century ago, a workplace where we can work with health and pride rests on the efforts of many. Today, relax a little and acknowledge everything you've accomplished. Work has value, and rest has just as much value too.