Workers demand pay hikes at Asia's May Day marches
Source: AP-Excite
By JIM GOMEZ
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - May Day moved beyond its roots as an international workers' holiday to a day of international protest Tuesday, with rallies throughout Asia demanding wage increases and marches planned across Europe over government-imposed austerity measures.
Europeans will take to the streets to protest against the measures that are being blamed for a big increase in the number of unemployed, particularly in Spain where one in four people is out of work.
In the United States, demonstrations, strikes and acts of civil disobedience are planned, including what could be the country's most visible Occupy rallies since the anti-Wall Street encampments came down in the fall.
In Asia, thousands of May Day protesters in the Philippines, Malaysia and Taiwan demanded hikes in pay that they say has not kept up with rising consumer prices, while also calling for lower school fees and expressing a variety of other gripes.
Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20120501/D9UFQDA81.html
Workers chant slogans during a May Day rally to call for a minimum wage law in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Tuesday, May 1, 2012. (AP Photo/Lai Seng Sin)
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