La Festa del lavoro o Festa dei lavoratori viene celebrata il 1º maggio di ogni anno in molti Paesi del mondo per ricordare la lotta dei lavoratori per la riduzione della giornata lavorativa. La festa ricorda le battaglie operaie, in particolare quelle volte alla conquista del diritto all’orario di lavoro quotidiano fissato in otto ore. In Europa, la festività del primo maggio fu ufficializzata a Parigi nel 1889 e ratificata in Italia due anni dopo. Durante il ventennio fascista, a partire dal 1924, la celebrazione fu anticipata al 21 aprile, in coincidenza con il Natale di Roma, divenendo per la prima volta giorno festivo con la denominazione Natale di Roma – Festa del lavoro. Fu poi riportata alla data attuale del primo maggio dopo la fine del conflitto mondiale nel 1945, mantenendo lo status di giorno festivo.
Labor Day, also known as May Day or Festa dei Lavoratori, is a public, nationwide holiday in Italy celebrating the working class on the first of May. Known as the day of the worker, this holiday allows public services such as schools and banks to close while the citizens of Italy take to the streets to partake in numerous festivals, reenactments, parades, and spring rituals celebrating workers' rights and freedoms.
This holiday attracts crowds of both Italian natives and tourists while popular destinations are swarmed by people celebrating the holiday with short vacations. Celebrators can visit concerts, parades and public demonstrations for workers' rights. Alternatively, people can also take the day off and rest at home.
The very first Italian Labor Day was celebrated in the late 1800s. Originally started as a way to honor workers' achievement by allowing them a day off to relax and celebrate, it also brought attention to the accomplishments of the average worker and their struggle for better working conditions.
Labor Day was briefly cancelled in the early 1900s, but it was reintroduced once more in 1945 following World War II. Since then, May 1 has been officiated as a day of rest for workers everywhere. The holiday is celebrated in many countries around the globe.
In countries such as France and Germany, the people take to the streets and demonstrate their workers' rights in parades and marches similar to Italy. In many European countries, many seem to practice the public holiday with demonstrations or simply a day off from work. Even when Labor Day is not observed as an official holiday in some countries, the workers' cause is still celebrated with festivities and celebrations in the streets of the cities. Ranging from festivals to simply a day of no school, each country celebrates Labor Day differently, yet the holiday is still honored and observed throughout.
The U.S. celebrates its Labor Day different from Italy and the rest of Europe. Unlike most of Europe, in which Labor Day is hosted in early May, the U.S. observes Labor Day on the first Monday in September. While also honoring workers' rights and contributions, this holiday marks the unofficial end of summer many months away from the European Labor Day. Oregon was the first state to make this holiday official in 1887, with many more states following in coming years. Today, this holiday is celebrated in numerous locations globally, whether the holiday takes place in May or September.
It doesn't matter if the celebration is in spring or summer, as the holiday will always honor the achievements of the labor movement and the workers who keep their country working.
