May Day History
Source:  http://www.chicagohistory.org/dramas/

On May 1, 1886 Chicago was the epicenter of workers' struggle for the 8-hour day.  Trade unionists and immigrant workers nationwide had called for a nationwide general strike to demand the 8-hour day, and in Chicago tens of thousands took part in the strike and a march down Michigan Avenue. 

During this time, workers were paying with their blood and their lives for the right to organize and demand fair wages and working conditions.  Violence and militant speech were frequently used by both employers and workers. 

On May 3, police fired upon a strike line at the McCormick Reaper Works Factory, killing some workers.  In response, a mass rally of workers was organized for the next evening, at Haymarket Square.  Towards the end of the rally, after most of the several thousand who had attended were gone, the police ordered the crowd to disperse.  At this point a bomb was thrown by an unknown party.  Police began to fire their guns.  Dozens of police and workers were injured, and several were killed.

After the violence, dozens of activists across the city were rounded up by the authorities, and 8 prominent leaders were put on trial.  After a biased trial heavily influenced by the business community, seven of the eight were sentenced to death; the eighth to hard labor.  Three were eventually pardoned because the trial was so flawed, but one died in prison in a suspected suicide and four of them, Spies, Engel, Parsons, and Fischer were hanged.  These are known as the Haymarket Martyrs.  May 1 is now commemorated internationally as Labor Day.

Workers Memorial Day History
Source:  www.aflcio.org <http://www.aflcio.org>

Each April 28, since 1989, the unions of the AFL-CIO observe Workers Memorial Day as a day to remember those who have suffered and died on the job. As we remember those who have died in workplace catastrophes, suffered diseases because of exposure to toxic substances or been injured because of dangerous conditions, we rededicate ourselves to the fight for safe workplaces. As such, a typical theme for Workers
Memorial Day has been "Mourn for the Dead, Fight for the Living." 

April 28 was chosen because it is the anniversary of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the day of similar remembrance in Canada. Every year, people in hundreds of communities and at worksites recognize workers who have been killed or injured on the job. Trade unionists around the world now mark April 28 as an International Day of Mourning. 

Workers Memorial Day is observed in nearly one hundred countries. April 28 has been recognized as international commemoration day for dead and injured workers since 1996, when at the United Nations in New York, a Global Union delegation lit a commemoration candle to highlight the plight of workers who die, are injured or become ill. It has been officially endorsed by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the International Labour Organization (ILO). Eleven countries or territories formally recognize April 28 as a national observance day: Argentina, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Dominican Republic, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Spain and Taiwan. Information on International Workers Memorial Day events can be found at www.hazards.org/wmd/index.htm <http://www.hazards.org/wmd/index.htm>.