Mohan Man Swar 

The First of May is observed all over the world as ‘May day’ every year as a symbol of the great unity of workers and paying homage to their long and glorious history of struggle and sacrifice. It was first celebrated after the industrial revolution. At present the worker’ movement is divided into numerous factions and it faces grave questions over both its future and very existence. Moreover, the entire movement needs to move in a new manner due to the unfortunate circumstances the Corona virus pandemic has created. Now more than ever, this day needs to give a resolute message of unity and fraternity to the wider world.

‘May Day’ is derived from the French word ‘Maider’ which means to come and help. This day was celebrated as a festival in Europe symbolising a call for help. It is also seen as a day cherishing and welcoming the advent of the spring season. All in all, it was an occasion to celebrate the light, life and our very existence. Tracing its historical roots, the seed of the workers’ movement was planted in the early 18th century after conflict between the workers and the owners in Europe and North America. The workers organised and staged a movement demanding 8 hours work, 8 hours pay, 8 hours rest and 8 hours recreation.

On the first of May, 1886 the workers took to the streets in the industrial city of Chicago, America and the administration severely cracked down upon them leading to many workers being arrested and unlawfully murdered. After four years of long and painful struggle, the American government finally bowed down to their demands. Under the proposal put forth by Frederick Engels at the 2nd Communist International Convention; 1st May was designated to be celebrated as ‘Mayday’ symbolising the great victory achieved by the workers.

We in Nepal formally started celebrating May Day only from 2007. We all should realise that it is the need of the hour to have a thorough and honest discussion on the present state of our entire trade union movement.

Contemporarily, it seems inevitable that the world will face another great economic depression due to the havoc wreaked upon by the capitalist economies. Every passing day more and more businesses are going bust and others are forced to go into merger with other financial entities. Both the private and public sector are overly dependent upon external loan which in turn has given rise to rampant privatisation and commercialisation. Even the prices of services concerned with the fundamental rights of human beings have skyrocketed in such a way that it is out of the reach of the workers and the wider general public.

Unemployment and poverty is on the rise whilst neo-liberal economic policies have gravely encroached upon the rights of the workers. The one-sided use of technology only for the benefit of the owners has resulted in the exploitation of the workers.

In the context of Nepal, the situation is worrying as the present laws appear to be ambiguous when speaking about the rights of the workers and even the new laws in the making seem to be rather hostile towards the working class. Most of our youths have migrated abroad seeking employment opportunities and we constantly hear reports of them being underpaid and discriminated against. Till present date, hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives to the Covid-19 pandemic and the whole world has come to a standstill. Workers face an uncertain future with many experts tipping the present economic order to collapse. Even in these challenging times, our trade union movement is still divided and is unable to unite whereas the helpless workers are living on the streets battling hunger with their jobs being unlawfully terminated by their employers. We seem to have lost our spirit and forgotten our past origin as we seem to be ready to surrender to the imperialists and capitalists and are even willing to take upon their polices and beliefs.

First and foremost, it is absolutely critical for all the stakeholders to have a clear and precise comprehension of the trade union movement and the route it will embark upon in the coming days. The challenges faced by the movement from its initial period to the present days have evolved and changed profoundly. The movement is crying out for a competent leadership that is dynamic in nature and is willing to adapt by arming itself with new ideas and beliefs in the backdrop of the ever changing geo-political landscape of the 21st century. All the progressive and revolutionary elements of the movement should come together as one and confront the challenges head on. It is also clearly imperative for all of us to whole-heartedly abide by the principle of one for all and all for one and the movement also should be transformative to its very core.

The trade union movement in Nepal should align itself with the goal of prosperity, progress and socialist nation as envisioned by our constitution. In the wake of this pandemic, we all should remain safe and secure and governments globally should do everything within their reach to safeguard the rights and well-being of the workers and their citizenry. Millions of Nepali workers who had migrated have returned and the government should build a framework whereby all of them could be purposefully mobilised turning this adverse situation into an opportunity.

The state should fully utilise its resources to create a favorable working environment where the skills they learnt overseas could be optimally used for the greater good of the nation. The government should put firm emphasis in the fields of agriculture and animal husbandry and put forth programs targeting them. A large portion of our fertile land that is left barren could be used for aforementioned sectors. Our government should seriously contemplate upon the modality of development going forward and formulate a concrete plan to take substantial stride towards a peaceful, prosperous and self-reliant Nepal. 

(The author is a member of Financial Control Committee of World Federation of Trade Unions WFTU.) 

Published on: 1 May 2020 | The Rising Nepal