By Nicholas Garriga, Niniek Karmini and John Leicester, Associated Press — Sunday 2 May 2021
PARIS (AP) — Workers and union leaders dusted off bullhorns and flags for slimmed-down but still boisterous — and at times violent — May Day marches on Saturday, demanding more labour protections amid a pandemic that has turned economies and workplaces upside down. In countries where 1 May is International Labour Day, the annual celebration produced a rare sight during the pandemic: large and closely packed crowds, with marchers striding shoulder-to-shoulder with clenched fists behind banners.
In France, thousands took to the streets with union banners, with riot police at times clashing with demonstrators in Paris and Lyon. Police in Paris made 34 arrests; five were arrested and 27 officers injured in Lyon. In Turkey and the Philippines, police prevented May Day protests, enforcing virus lockdowns and making hundreds of arrests. In Indonesia, thousands voiced anger at a new jobs law feared to reduce severance pay and increase outsourcing. In Bosnia, coal miners demanded better wages. In Brazil, thousands rallied both for and against President Bolsonaro’s handling of the pandemic.
In the Caribbean, celebrations were muted. In Guyana, workers fired back at ministerial assertions that workers are the country’s most important asset, demanding that the government back up such claims in tangible ways. In St. Kitts and Nevis, in numerous instances private sector employers resorted to dumping workers — many just months away from qualifying for post-employment benefits — under the pretext that COVID-19 was to blame.