History of May 1st, International workers’ day

May 1st, International Workers’ Day, commemorates the historic struggle of working people throughout the world, and is recognized in most countries. The United States of America and Canada are among the exceptions. This despite the fact that the holiday began in the 1880s in the USA, linked to the battle for the eight-hour day, and the Chicago anarchists.

US: Recruiting farm workers from Mexico

By Garance Burke

Weary of waiting for Congress to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws, the United Farm Workers hopes to recruit Mexican laborers to pick crops on U.S. farms. The union’s efforts to import temporary workers under an existing government program follows similar moves by lawmakers in Arizona and Colorado, who are also trying to create new pathways to bring in foreign field hands without approval from Washington.

Bulgaria: Urgent need for workers

By Petar Kostadinov

Bulgaria’s biggest Black Sea resort Slunchev Bryag (Sunny Beach) desperately needs unskilled workers, Elena Ivanova chairperson of the Union of hotel owners at the resort told Bulgarian Focus news agency on April 29.

World Day for Safety and Health at Work

The world of work is to mark the World Day for Safety and Health at Work this year on 28 April, amid a new call by the International Labour Office (ILO) for managing risks in the work environment to reduce both the human and the economic burdens of work-related accidents and ill health. (From the ILO)

1.5m workers at risk from carcinogens

MORE than 1.5 million workers may be exposed to cancer-causing substances on the job without even knowing it, the ACTU claims. Speaking on International Workers Memorial Day, when unions remember workers who have lost their lives at work, ACTU president Sharan Burrow launched a three-year campaign to eliminate cancer-causing substances from the workplace.

South Africa: Migrant workers need to be protected

A recent Labour Court judgment ruled that undocumented migrants and refugees had the same labour rights as South African citizens if they were in a working relationship. While a definitive and positive step in recognising the rights of migrant workers, the ruling only reiterates laws that were already in place to protect workers’ rights.

US: The erosion of employer-provided health care

by Jared Bernstein and Heidi Shierholz

It is widely recognized that the means through which most working-age Americans receive health care coverage-the employer-based system-is undergoing fundamental change. Though a majority of workers and their families are still covered through employers, a variety of factors, most prominently increased costs, have led to a steady slide in coverage.

ILO: Green jobs conference

The impact of environmental change on jobs, sustainable economic growth and poverty was discussed at an International Labour Organization (ILO) research conference held in Niigata, Japan from 21 to 22 April.The conference, “Green Jobs for Asia and the Pacific” is the product of the Green Jobs Initiative launched at the ILO’s November 2007 Governing Body session, in partnership with, among others, the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Trade Union Confederation.

US: income inequality is growing

The gap between the richest and poorest families, and between the richest and middle-income families, grew significantly in most states over the past two decades, according to a new study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Economic Policy Institute.

Canada: how to keep older workers

By Julie Mollins

Shorter work weeks, flexible hours and extended healthcare benefits are important for recruiting and keeping older workers, a new survey showed. A poll of Canadians age 55 and older conducted by Ipsos Reid identified several factors that companies need to keep in mind to attract and stop older workers from leaving.