From the PFLP Central Media Office
The following statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) Central Media Office on the occasion of May 1st – International Workers’ Day – was published on May 1, 2025, by Resistance News Network.
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine May Day poster
To the free people of the world: Unite against barbarism!
Palestinian workers in the heart of fire! The fuel of national and liberation struggle!
To the masses of our great people,
To the brave workers of Palestine,
To the free people of the world everywhere.
On International Workers’ Day — a day on which the world stands in tribute to the heroes of the working class, the makers of life, those who sow hope with their sweat and write with their effort and patience the epic of struggle for dignity, justice and freedom — this occasion in Palestine becomes a moment of loyalty to the toiling martyrs, whose blood was shed in workshops, factories, farms, in queues at checkpoints and beneath the rubble of demolished homes.
It is a day to renew the covenant with the Palestinian working class, which has always stood at the forefront, leading in the arenas of production and resistance.
The Palestinian working class has long formed the vanguard of national and social struggle, standing firm in the face of occupation and genocide despite official neglect. On this occasion, we salute the workers of Palestine and the martyrs of the labor movement, especially working women who bear the burden of struggle and discrimination.
We also value the positions of free trade unionists around the world who oppose normalization and occupation. We affirm our alignment with the global working class in the confrontation against capitalism and colonialism.
To the working class across the world … To our struggling workers … To our great people:
This year’s [International] Workers’ Day comes amidst the height of zionist targeting of all segments of our people — foremost among them the working class — who have been struck hardest by the systematic destruction of the national economy and forced dependency on the zionist economy, amid rampant poverty, unemployment and the collapse of the labor system.
Since October 7, 2023, the Gaza Strip has faced a barbaric assault that destroyed economic infrastructure, martyred thousands of workers, demolished hundreds of facilities and raised unemployment to over 80%.
In the West Bank, workers have become constant targets at checkpoints and are forced to work in settlements. Palestinian workers inside the 1948 lands are denied union rights, while those in the diaspora face marginalization and unemployment. Yet despite these wounds, Palestinian workers continue their struggle and steadfastness in the face of occupation and deprivation.
To the free people of the world … To our people … To our valiant workers …
On this [International] Workers’ Day, and at this historic moment in which our people are facing a genocidal war that targets human beings, land and national resources — striking at the heart of the productive and working society — against this criminal aggression led by this rogue entity with the support of imperialist powers, the PFLP affirms the following:
- Victory for the Palestinian worker, and the defense of their life, dignity and rights, is not only a national and moral duty but also a fundamental gateway to comprehensive national and social liberation.
- Any discourse on [International] Workers’ Day that does not begin with confronting the genocide against our people and standing with the working class in the fields of daily struggle is an empty discourse that does not represent the interests of the toilers nor align with their struggles.
- We call on the global trade union movement, in all its spectrums and orientations, to stand firmly with the workers of Palestine. Unions around the world have proven capable of disrupting the machinery of aggression through boycotts, strikes and political pressure.
Today, you bear a heightened responsibility to act to stop the war, enforce international isolation of the zionist entity, which is committing documented war crimes against workers and civilians, and take a clear stance by boycotting the Histadrut [zionist labor federation], a key arm of the occupation.
- There is an urgent need to launch a national economic resilience plan to support the working class in overcoming the consequences of the genocidal war and zionist policies. This plan must be based on local production, reduced dependency and combating poverty and unemployment.
- The Palestinian labor movement must be rebuilt on democratic and genuinely representative foundations through fair and transparent elections for the General Federation of Trade Unions, based on proportional representation and the inclusion of all unions — leading to a truly representative union body, not a union of one party or one person.
- It is the responsibility of official bodies to swiftly form emergency labor committees in every location in Gaza and the West Bank to support those affected by the ongoing aggression and its catastrophic consequences.
- We call for the establishment of a national, Arab and international fund to support workers in Gaza and the West Bank, in light of the occupation’s destruction of infrastructure and labor sectors, which has pushed the overwhelming majority of workers into unemployment.
- There is a need to pass laws and collective agreements that safeguard labor rights and establish a fair minimum wage.
- We must strengthen alliances with global trade unions and build an international front to isolate and boycott the zionist entity at all levels.
In conclusion, the Popular Front affirms that May 1 is a day to reaffirm our steadfast resolve to resist occupation, to raise the banner of social justice and to continue our struggle for workers’ rights. We pledge to carry their banner — the banner of the oppressed toilers and the resisting, self-sacrificing people — until the homeland is free, human dignity is restored and a society of justice and equality is built.
Free people of the world, unite … against barbarism!
Salute to the workers of Palestine … the messengers of the earth, the shield of the revolution, the hammer of change and the builders of tomorrow.
Salute to those martyred while working … and to those who continue working despite hunger.
Glory to the martyrs … glory to the resistance … freedom to the prisoners … a speedy recovery to the wounded … glory to Palestine from the river to the sea.