More from Dick Meister
The Plight Of The Pregnant Worker
(00:04:42)
From: Dick Meister
Despite the anti-discrimination laws, many pregnant workers are being legally fired for being pregnant.
Sit Down, Punk!
(00:04:56)
From: Dick Meister
Labor leader Art Carter was an important but now largely forgotten hero of the anti-Vietnam War movement.
So, What About The State Of The Unions, Mr. President?
(00:04:43)
From: Dick Meister
Although President Obama said nothing about organized labor in his State of the Union address, he won labor plaudits for the pro-worker programs he proposed.
Labor's Honorary Lesbian
(00:04:13)
From: Dick Meister
San Francisco labor leader Walter Johnson was a key supporter of gay rights.
It's Do Or Die For The United Auto Workers
(00:04:26)
From: Dick Meister
The United Auto Workers is in danger of losing its standing as one of the country's most important institutions.
Student Athletes Deserve Pay For Their Play
(00:03:49)
From: Dick Meister
So-called student athletes should be paid for their work in bringing billions of dollars to the nation's colleges and universities.
A Decent Living For All?
(00:06:25)
From: Dick Meister
The minimum wage is increasing in eight states.
Stamp Out Sexual Harrassment!
(00:02:53)
From: Dick Meister
The need to combat sexual harassment on the job is drawing lots of attention.
Unemployment Slamming Public Employees
(00:04:03)
From: Dick Meister
Public employees, many of them African-Americans, are being hit particularly hard by today's high levels of unemployment.
Six Ways To Heal The Economy
(00:03:25)
From: Dick Meister
The AFL-CIO has a very promising plan to heal our very sick economy.
Related Pieces
Piece Description
This commentary, never broadcast, notes that May Day once was more than a day to herald the coming of Spring. It was once the day for demonstrations that were crucial in winning the most important right ever won by working people -- the eight-hour workday that's long been the standard in the United States and other industrial nations and at least an aspiration everywhere else.
2 Comments
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Review of The Real May DayIn 2:55 minutes Dick Meister gives us a concise history of May Day, as well as the long struggle behind the realization of the 8 hour work day.
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Broadcast History
None.
Transcript
It’s May Day, the traditional day to celebrate the coming of Spring. But it’s also a day to commemorate the long, hard struggle for the most important right working people have ever won – the eight-hour workday, the standard in the United States, of course, and in every other industrial nation and the goal everywhere else.
In this country, anyway, people generally take the eight-hour day for granted. But it took many years of hard struggle to win it, beginning in the mid-1800s. By 1867, the federal government, six states and several cities had passed laws limiting their employees’ hours to eight per day.
The laws weren’t very well enforced, and in some areas were overturned by courts. But they did set an important precedent that ultimately led to a powerful popular movement. It was launched on May Day in 1886, when nearly a half-million workers in dozens of cities across the c...
Read the full transcript
Timing and Cues
Intro: Commentator Dick Meister says May Day once was more than just a day to celebrate the coming of Spring.
Outro: Dick Meister is a veteran San Francisco journalist.
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Bill Palladino
Posted on May 04, 2005 at 06:14 PM | Permalink
Review of The Real May Day
Continuing his series of well-written, historical musings on the labor movement Dick Meister hits stride with this description of one true meaning of May Day. Dick's pieces are like those short side-bars in your college history text book. They focus on one moment, in one aspect of history, concentrating it into something you remember after turning the page.
These are stories with a lot of teeth in them. Dick has obviously seen these events unfold and looks back on them with clarity, allowing us all to share the view. This, and all of Dick's essays, are short and easy to drop in during any broadcast. If you have a local news program that needs a little labor edge, Dick might be your shop-steward.