Epress.am News from Armenia
On May 1, 1886, an estimated more than 300,000 workers went on strike and held rallies throughout the United States, demanding the 12–14 hour workday be reduced to 8 hours with no cut in pay. On May 4, during a peaceful labor demonstration, a dynamite bomb was thrown at police, who were attempted to disperse the rally, and in the legal proceedings that followed, 8 anarchists were convicted, of which 4 were hanged in 1887 and one committed suicide in jail. In 1893, all 8 were officially recognized as innocent, while in 1889, a decision was made to hold rallies around the world on May 1, a single date where workers everywhere could demand the eight-hour workday.
In Armenia today, the workday is 8 hours as defined by law, but do people work freely and live in a just society? Are the rights of the poor and the wealthy equal? Such questions are raised by those who are preparing a series of events to take place in Yerevan on May 1 to mark International Workers' Day.
At 5 pm on May 1, they and their supporters will gather at the Vernissage outdoor market. Organizers ask all those who stand opposed to the current system in Armenia to join them in the International Workers' Day events.