Since 1890, May Day has been known as a day to demonstrate and demand workers' rights. It is also a day to celebrate the gains and achievements of the working class. On this occasion, the World Movement of Christian Workers invites its members to join with other workers around the world to "always call attention to the dignity and rights of those who work, to condemn situations in which this dignity and these rights are violated, and to help bring about changes that will ensure authentic progress for man and society" (Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Laborem Exercens). In 2025, the call is made through this message written by the Reunion Island Movement.
The dignity of eating the fruit of our labor
At a time when our world is facing significant geopolitical upheavals, the few beneficiaries of the capitalist mode of production will do everything to protect themselves. The lives and dignity of working-class men and women will continue to deteriorate as they are viewed as tools that can be discarded to save money.
In Réunion Island, after the Covid crisis, the government significantly increased the number of subsidized contracts (jobs partially funded by the State). At the same time, there was a development of micro-enterprises. As a result, in 2022, the unemployment rate (according to the ILO definition) in Réunion reached a historically “low” level of 18.1%… compared to 7.3% in mainland France! Despite these improvements, the unemployment rate remains very high in Réunion, with a frightening rate of 41.9% among young people aged 15 to 24 (source: insee.fr). Given the current economic situation and political orientations, the number of unemployed individuals will certainly increase again, as the wage bill is the preferred adjustment variable to balance public accounts.
The appropriation of half of the world’s wealth by 1% of the global population creates inequalities that harm the poorest. According to experts, this economic violence is no accident; it is the current functioning of our society.
This is evident in Réunion, where an international group, present in several sectors, holds 37% market share, representing 45% of everyday consumer spending (source: Observatoire des Prix, des Marges et des Revenus de La Réunion). In such a situation, how can we hope for a real decrease in inflation? Just look at the increase in the price of water bottles when a cyclone ravaged the island in March of this year.
Added to this are wage inequalities between men and women and salaries below the national average for an equivalent level of education. We then understand the young Réunionese who go abroad to study and do not wish to return to work in their homeland.
So why protest on May 1st, some ask? The small feel they will always remain small, their hopes for a better tomorrow diminish. Why go to the streets if we are not listened to? Is it worth it?
YES, we must, as active citizens, be present in the streets to show our disagreement with an economic system that harms workers. We must show solidarity with those whose end of the month is increasingly difficult.
Artificial intelligence, presented as a major technological evolution, serves a global economy that upends our lives at a dizzying speed.
Instead, let us develop our natural intelligence to put it in the service of workers' dignity.
As Christians, as baptized individuals, we must support the defense of the smallest, those who suffer from injustices, inequalities, and discrimination. We must support the right to dignity and decent work for everyone, in love and solidarity… a true program for life.
May 1st is also the feast of Saint Joseph, the worker, craftsman, and a symbol of dignity according to the Pope. Let us pray to him so that every worker may find or rediscover “the value, dignity, and joy of what it means to eat bread that is the fruit of their labor... And that we find paths that lead us to say: no young person, no individual, no family without work,” as Pope Francis said.
