PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI: Labour Day, also known as May Day in some countries, is a day to commemorate the rights of workers around the world. In Pakistan, this day is observed on May 1. In honour of workforce contribution, we decided to break down the history of this holiday in numbers.
1810
Was the year to which the origins of this day are generally traced back to
8
Was the number of work hours being rallied for with the ‘Eight-Hour Day Movement’ to put an end to the exploitation of labourers who dragged themselves on for up to 16 hours a day
10,000
Is the number of labourers it took, who protested against exploitation in the streets, to get the movement started in Canada
1840
Was the year when the movement really took off when a carpenter in New Zealand, Samuel Parnell, refused to work for more than eight hours and was heard
1869
Was the year the movement surfaced in the United States of America
40,000
Was the approximate number of workers who rioted and protested in Haymarket, Chicago for fair wages and decent work hours
