Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki met with municipal workers at construction and service sites as part of May 1 Labor and Solidarity Day celebrations. Mayor Eşki, together with DİSK Genel-İş İzmir Branch No. 7 President Uğur Nazlıoğlu, congratulated workers on Labor and Solidarity Day and emphasized that workers’ rights were won through historical struggles and that organized labor movements must continue. Eşki and Nazlıoğlu stressed that May Day should not be seen as just a single day, but as an ongoing process of awareness and struggle.

Bornova Municipality welcomed May 1 Labor Day together with workers. In the morning hours, Mayor Ömer Eşki visited workers employed at the Directorate of Public Works, Parks and Gardens, and Cleaning Services facilities to celebrate the occasion. DİSK Genel-İş İzmir Branch No. 7 President Uğur Nazlıoğlu and municipal officials also attended the program.

Due to the tragic traffic accident that recently occurred in Bornova, the gatherings were held in a modest manner; there were no folk dances, marches, or slogans. However, the speeches delivered during the event attracted attention with their strong messages.

“The Real Struggle Exists in Everyday Life”

Mayor Ömer Eşki stated that trade union struggles should not be limited solely to economic gains and said:

“Trade union struggle is not only about earning higher wages. As a society, either all of us will enjoy these rights together, or none of us will truly succeed. Social transformation is only possible through awareness. This system will only change when you change the people around you.

At the core of the solution lie social justice and equal opportunity. If the child of a worker and the child of an executive cannot study under the same conditions or benefit from the same hospital services, then there is no justice. Without social justice, no right has real meaning. Current forms of struggle are not sufficient. I do not believe the working class has achieved major gains through these methods.”

Nazlıoğlu: “Whatever We Gained, We Gained Through Struggle”

DİSK Genel-İş İzmir Branch No. 7 President Uğur Nazlıoğlu emphasized the historical significance of May Day in his speech. Referring to the struggles against harsh working conditions in the 19th century that gave birth to this historic day, he described it as a symbol of workers’ unity and solidarity:

“No rights were granted to us as favors. Whatever we gained, we gained through struggle. The rights we have today are the result of struggles fought in the past. Collective bargaining agreements, weekly days off, annual leave… all of these were won through the collective struggle of the working class.”

“Rights Are Regressing, but the Struggle Continues”

Pointing out the decline in workers’ rights in Türkiye in recent years, Nazlıoğlu noted that trade union rights have been weakened:

“Since the 1980s, union rights have been gradually eroded, strikes have been banned, and organization has been weakened. The current picture may seem dark, but it will not lead us to despair. The working class will continue to strengthen the struggle by standing side by side.”