May Day

In 1889 the International Socialist Congress meeting in Paris fixed May 1 as the day to publicize the eight-hour day because America's AFL was going to hold an eight-hour-day demonstration on May 1, 1890. Since that time May Day has become a major celebration in communist countries. President Eisenhower in 1955 proclaimed May 1 as "Loyalty Day."

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

Last reviewed October 2022