But by the way, why is this day a holiday?

Like most French people, you are woken up quietly on this Thursday, May 1, 2025. This day is a holiday throughout France. A tradition that dates back to the 19th century.

A holiday and unemployed

As a reminder, a holiday is a day of religious party (Easter, Christmas, etc.), secular (January 1, etc.), or national commemoration (July 14) provided for by law.

Currently, France has 11 holidays: January 1, Easter Monday, May 1, therefore, May 8, Ascension Thursday, Pentecost Monday, July 14, August 15, November 1, November 11 and December 25.

Note that in addition to being a public holiday, May 1 is also a day off, that is to say that it is “necessarily not worked, with some exceptions”.

A tradition dates back to 1889

This date is not just French. It refers to the anniversary date, “in 1884, the call of American workers’ unions to claim the eight -hour day,” notes the public life site.

Called across the Atlantic “Moving Day”, this first day of May corresponds to the new accounting year for American companies and the closing of workers’ employment contracts who, for some, must move to find a job elsewhere.

In France, this celebration was established on the occasion of the centenary of the French Revolution in 1889. May 1 was then a day of demonstrations, as Public Vie recalls.

This celebration was celebrated for the first time in 1890. The following year, it became a tragedy with the North Fourmies shooting, where ten demonstrators died.

In 1919, this date became one day unemployed after a vote of the Parliament. Then, under the Vichy regime on May 1 became the “labor and social concord”, in connection with the regime’s motto. This day then disappeared at the Liberation.

It was reintroduced in 1946 then with law 47-778 of April 30, 1947 before being definitively established as a holiday, unemployed and paid in 1948 (law 48-746 of April 29, 1948).

May 1 is celebrated in many countries around the world. However, it is not always this date that is a holiday. On the North American continent, it is the “day plowing” which is, while it takes place on the first Monday in September.

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