International Labour Day also known as May Day or International Workers’ Day, celebrates the struggle, dedication and commitment of the working class and is an annual public holiday in several countries.
The genesis of Labour Day goes back to the 19th century when industrialization was pushing laborers to work almost 15 hours a day. The 1st May 1886 strike was held in Chicago, and a few other cities were the site of a major union demonstration in support of an 8-hour’ workday demand. There was a confrontation between the demonstrators and the government. The police then opened fire at the gathering, killing several men and wounding around 200. And, hence, the Haymarket Affair became a part of US history.
In 1889, the International Socialist Conference declared that in commemoration of the Haymarket affair, 1st May would be an international holiday.
In the 21st century, we have achieved many milestones as far as labour rights are concerned. But, due to rapid changes in the mode of work and technological progress being inducted in the production system, the work has changed. Today’s work depends on data and software. And at the same time, developing countries still have a huge unskilled labour force.
Presently, we are in the midst of a pandemic, and in this circumstance, workers across the globe are the most vulnerable for two reasons: one is that most of the activities are stopped due to lockdowns, so there are no regular incomes. The second is that after the liberalization movement, the production does not happen not at one place—different kind of stakeholders are engaged in finishing a product. But, what happened in this process is that the worker or the workforce becomes invisible. They are what we call the “informal” workers. The middle man pays after getting the product. In a situation like a lockdown, the informal workers are nowhere.
Their salary is being slashed, and many workers are being asked by the employers to go on a leave without pay. People are losing their jobs.
Indian authorities have stopped the Dearness allowance hike, which was applicable from January 2020 for the employees of central government and pensioners. What is the logic behind this DA? As per my understanding, it is to mitigate the impact of inflation on the employees and pension holders. In recent time, everyone knows where the price rises are going. And there is no sign of getting the situation under control in the immediate future. Then, a question arises that how will the salaried class or pensioners fight with inflation?
Globally, as per a recent report by International Labour Organization, almost half the global workforce, 1.6 billion people, are in “immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed” due to the economic impact of COVID-19.
The lockdown is necessary to fight the pandemic, but there are many more things that need to be done along with a lockdown. For a country like India, where you cannot imagine the level of inequalities at every stage, whether it’s income, class, caste, religion, gender or region, the situation becomes even more precarious.
About 90% of our workforce doesn’t have a secured income, forget about the proper social security nets. If we look at every intersection, after the lockdown, there seem to be no concrete plans announced for the labour class, who has been working in all kinds of industries. There are people engaged in the construction work, we have a large number of people who are self-employed, earning livelihoods for themselves and their family. These people are not ordinary people, they are the backbone of the Indian economy, but in return, they get nothing but humiliation, treatment like second class citizens.
It was horrifying to see migrants workers stuck in the middle of nowhere. Here, I was expecting that the corporate and the government taking care of them. If our government or business houses had taken care of the migrants, the situation wouldn’t have aggravated like it did in Delhi, Surat and Mumbai.
I cannot finish my blog without mentioning the front-line workers in the time of COVID-19. They are not only working, but they are contributing extra work hours of service risking their lives each day. It’s great to see that everyone is praising them, but they have been there always. None of us considered them for equal wages, better work condition. Moreover, the respect or dignity they deserved.
There is an urgent need to address the labour questions at large and providing immediate help and prepare a broader plan to address the issues differently.