Photos by LITTLE WING LUNA
Text by MITCH MEÑEZ
MAY 1 is International Labor Day and in the Philippines it is a holiday.
The designation of May 1 as Workers Day stated in Canada in 1870 when a parade was held in support of a strike against a 58-hour week work.
The practice now is 40 hours a week (eight hours a day) but there are still a myriad of issues that burden the workers.
This year, May 1 fell on a Thursday and many Filipinos took a four-day vacation from work and hied off to the beaches to beat the summer heat.
Many took to the streets to protest what they feel is the government’s neglect of the worker’s welfare. They demanded for an increase in the P125 a day minimum wage which government ignored.
The searing heat matched the emotions of the protestors who also called for the release of Communist Party of the Philippines leaders Benito Tiamzon and wife, Wilma.
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