Unions call on all to celebrate workers

Tuesday's May Day celebrations will take place in Khorixas and focus on economic upliftment for Namibian workers and employers.The National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) yesterday released a short press statement confirming that the celebration will take place at the Herbert Conradie Sports stadium on 1 May in Khorixas and calls on all Namibian workers to join the proceedings. The event will begin at 09:00 in the morning. The NUNW yesterday noted that the May Day commemoration is a “day of victory to the workers of the world” and it is the union's responsibility to “make sure that this workers day remains unforgettable”.The May Day commemoration, as a worker's day, dates back to 1904, when an international conference of all global trade unions called for a wide scale demonstration on 1 May to assure the recognition for the worker. The day seeks to communicate the message that “all labour that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be respected by everybody,” the NUNW statement noted. This year's May Day, also known as International Worker's Day, briefly became the centre of contention in March, when President Hage Geingob proposed that the day be dedicated to a nationwide clean-up campaign, with everyone urged to chip in.Geingob however backtracked on the proposal, shifting the date to 25 May instead, after he faced backlash from numerous quarters.A letter addressed to Geingob from the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), at the urging of the workers unions, warned that changing the “scope of May Day represents an attack against the legitimate activities of trade unions in Namibia and are a blow for the whole trade union movement around the world. We strongly denounce it.”The ITUC emphasised that Workers Day celebrations internationally “are recognised as the cornerstone of democratic societies, and they represent the achievements of generations of working people struggling for their rights”.JANA-MARI SMITH

Unions call on all to celebrate workers

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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Unions call on all to celebrate workers

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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