The historic May Day will be observed in Bangladesh on Sunday as elsewhere across the world with due respect.
May Day, also known as the International Workers' Solidarity Day, commemorates the historic uprising of working people in Chicago, USA at the height of a prolonged fight for an eight-hour workday in the late 19th century.
The day is a public holiday in Bangladesh.
This year, the theme for this historic day in Bangladesh is "Sramik-Malik Ekata, Unnayaner Nishchayata'' (roughly translated reads: workers-owners unity, assurance of development).
President Md Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages ahead of the day.
The president called upon all development stakeholders to work together to ensure welfare of the country’s workers.
“In order to survive in today's competitive world, workers and employers along with the government will need to be more dedicated to maintaining a good relationship to boost production," he said.
The prime minister in her message said, “Our government has taken all possible measures to tackle the Covid situation including distribution of relief among the working people to stand beside them.”
She urged all to build a happy, rich and ‘Sonar Bangla’ as Bangabandhu dreamt of by working for the welfare of working people and the country's overall development.
Newspapers will publish supplements while radio and television channels will air special programmes highlighting the significance of the day.
Different organisations and political parties chalked out dedicated programmes to observe the day.
On May 1, 1886, 10 workers were killed when police opened fire on a demonstration in the US city of Chicago near Hay Market demanding an eight-hour working day instead of a 12-hour shift.
At the height of agitation, the authorities had to accept the workers' demand and the eight-hour day was introduced universally.
On July 14, 1889, an international workers' rally in Paris declared May 1 as the International Workers’ Solidarity Day in recognition of the Chicago workers' sacrifice and achievement and since 1890, the day has been observed globally as the International Workers’ Solidarity Day.
