May Day in Ghana: Who Speaks for the Informal Worker?

On May 1, workers across Ghana marked May Day, joining millions worldwide in commemorating International Workers’ Day. In Ghana, as elsewhere, the occasion is meant to celebrate the contributions and struggles of the working class. Yet in practice, the celebration raises an uncomfortable question: who exactly is being celebrated?

May Day has its origins in the 1886 Haymarket Affair in Chicago, a violent confrontation between workers and police that became a global symbol of labour resistance. When it was institutionalized by the Second International in 1889, the intent was clear, this was to be a day for all workers.

In Ghana, however, May Day has increasingly become the preserve of organized labour. The annual celebrations, often marked by speeches, parades, and political symbolism, tend to focus on the concerns of unionized workers, particularly within the public sector. While these concerns are legitimate, they represent only a fraction of Ghana’s labour force.

The real story of Ghana’s labour market lies elsewhere. The overwhelming majority of workers operate in the informal sector, outside formal contracts, regulation, and social protection. These workers face low wages, precarious employment, and limited access to collective bargaining structures. Yet their concerns remain largely peripheral to May Day discourse.

This imbalance is striking. In economies where formal employment dominates, labour protests and May Day rallies often centre on macroeconomic pressures, wages, inflation, and energy costs, that affect most workers. In Ghana, by contrast, the central labour challenge is structural: the persistence and scale of informality.

One would therefore expect May Day to serve as a platform for advancing a national conversation on formalization, worker protection, and inclusion. Instead, it largely reinforces existing divides between organized and unorganized labour.

This year’s theme, “Pivoting to Growth, Jobs, and Sustainable Livelihoods: Beyond Macroeconomic Stability” offers an opportunity to rethink that approach. Growth and livelihoods cannot be meaningfully discussed without addressing the conditions of informal workers, who form the backbone of the economy.

If May Day is to retain its historical and moral relevance, it must evolve. Organized labour, government, and policymakers should use the platform to:

• Advance strategies for gradual formalization
• Expand social protection mechanisms
• Promote innovative forms of worker organization within the informal sector

Without this shift, May Day risks becoming a ritual that speaks loudly, but only for a few.

The true test of its relevance in Ghana is simple: whether it can give voice to those who currently have none.

Shaibu A. Gariba
https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaibu-gariba/

Email: shaibu.gariba@gmail.com

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