Labor Day in Brazil

Good morning, people! Tomorrow is a national holiday, Labor Day in Brazil.
This holiday happens on May 1st,  not only in Brazil, but also in many countries around the world. For some very Catholic countries it can also be called São José Operário’s Day, patron saint of workers.

History of the holiday

The history of Labor Day dates back to 1886 in the city of Chicago, United States. On May 1st of this year, thousands of workers went to the streets to demand better working conditions, among them, the reduction of the workday from thirteen to eight hours a day. On the same day they held a major general workers’ strike there. Two days after these events, a riot involving police and workers led to the death of some demonstrators.
Following this, several protests inspired by the struggle of the workers continued to take place. In 1919, France took the date of May 1st as the holiday for all laborers (ordinary workers), or Labor Day. Russia did the same in 1920, as did many other countries. And of course, the Labor Day in Brazil also appeared.

History of Labor Day in Brazil

Labor Day in Brazil has been celebrated since 1895. However, it was only on September 26, 1924 that this date became the official Brazilian Worker’s Day, with the decree of Arthur da Silva Bernardes. In this decree, Arthur Bernardes established the date as a national holiday, in order to commemorate the martyrs of labor and fraternization of the working classes.
However, in the 1930s and 1940s, President Getúlio Vargas started using the date to publicize the creation of laws and labor benefits. The character of protest of this date was discarded, in favor of a bias commemoration. Vargas went on to call the date Labor Day in Brazil.
Nowadays, the holiday has lost its political meaning and it’s basically a day where people rest.

Curiosities about Labor Day in Brazil

• On May 1st, 1940 President Getúlio Vargas introduced the minimum wage.
• On May 1st, 1941, the Labor Court was created to resolve legal issues related specifically to labor relations and workers’ rights.

Now it’s your turn!

To practice what you’ve just learned, let’s complete this exercise. To really practice your comprehension , let’s try to complete this exercise using this Dica in Portuguese? Tell us if the information below is true or false using the letter F (falso/ false) or V (verdade / true).

1. (  ) Este feriado ainda mantém seus ideais políticos até hoje no Brasil.
2. (  ) No Brasil o feriado se tornou oficial em 1924.
3. (  ) O responsável por tornar o feriado oficial foi Arthur Bernardes.
4. (  ) O salário mínimo foi instituído por Arthur Bernardes.
5. (  ) Este feriado é comemorado dia 1º de Maio.
6. (  ) Este feriado também é conhecido como Dia de São José Operário,
7. (  ) Sua primeira aparição foi em 1886 na Itália.
8. (  ) O movimento original defendia o direito dos trabalhadores.
9. (  ) Neste dia as pessoas comemoram fazendo festas pela cidade.
10. (  ) Este feriado só existe no Brasil.

Don’t forget to check out the answers below to see if you got everything right. When the sentence is false, you’ll find the incorrect information marked in bold.

Finally you know more about Brazil Worker’s Day!
So, tell us… What about your country? Is May 1st a holiday too?

Also… Want to study in Brazil? Contact us at Rio & Learn. We have online Portuguese courses available for you right now.

          
Click on the links below to see more related Dicas
Brazil Holidays
History of Tiradentes
St George Day in Brazil
Good Friday in Brazil

Answers

1. (F) Este feriado ainda mantém seus ideais políticos até hoje no Brasil.
2. (V) No Brasil o feriado se tornou oficial em 1924.
3. (V) O responsável por tornar o feriado oficial foi Arthur Bernardes.
4. (F) O salário mínimo foi instituído por Arthur Bernardes.
5. (V) Este feriado é comemorado dia 1º de Maio.
6. (V) Este feriado também é conhecido como Dia de São José Operário,
7. (F) Sua primeira aparição foi em 1886 na Itália.
8. (V) O movimento original defendia o direito dos trabalhadores.
9. (F) Neste dia as pessoas comemoram fazendo festas pela cidade. 
10. (F) Este feriado só existe no Brasil.