May 1 to observe as public holiday on Labour Day in Pakistan?

ISLAMABAD: Pakistanis are doubting whether May 1 (Wednesday) will be declared a public holiday in honor of Labor Day or not as the federal government has not issued any notification yet. 

However, May 1 was included as a public holiday in the Cabinet Division circular listing all gazetted holidays for the year 2024.

The government will make a formal announcement that all educational institutions including schools will remain closed across the country on the first day of May.

The schools in Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and other areas of the country will observe a public holiday on Wednesday on the account of Labour Day. Private and public offices will also remain closed on May 1. State Bank of Pakitan is also expected to announce a bank holiday on Labour Day.

READ MORE: Labour Day message: PM Shehbaz hails workers as central to economic growth

Every year on May 1, the world celebrates International Labor Day, with a renewed commitment to upholding workers’ rights. Various public and private organizations host conferences, seminars, marches, walks, and webinars to honor the ultimate sacrifices of laborers.

The first labor policy was devised in 1972, in which May 1 was declared an official holiday. For the unversed, World Labour Day is marked to remember the massacre of laborers when ten unarmed demonstrators were shot and killed in the year 1937.