As announced by the organisers, the May Day gathering will include a symbolic sixteen minutes of silence to mark six months since the tragedy caused by the collapse of the canopy at the Railway Station in Novi Sad.

This will be an opportunity to remember all those “who are no longer with us, but whose memory we preserve”, states the May Day proclamation of “Nezavisnost”.

The union reminds that in the past year alone, 59 workers lost their lives at their workplace or died from work-related injuries.

“Last month we marked three years since the tragedy at the Soko mine, when eight miners lost their lives and eighteen were injured, for which no one has been held accountable to this day. They will have to, criminal responsibility will eventually need to be taken for the lost lives of workers”, notes “Nezavisnost”.

UGS “Nezavisnost”, as highlighted, “knows that the fight for functional institutions and the rule of law is our fight too”, as well as “the fight against systemic corruption”. Additionally, this union believes that “free media and professional public media services are one of the pillars of a democratic society, as is democratic electoral legislation”.

The union “knows that without investment in public education, healthcare, and other public services systems – there is no accessibility for all citizens”, and that “without appropriate investment in culture, we negate what we inherit from generations before us”.

“Nezavisnost” also “knows that environmental protection is our priority too” because “the interest of any corporation cannot be above public interest”. The union “also knows that Serbia’s youth should actively participate in building their future”, and that “care for our elderly citizens must not depend on their financial capabilities”.

The proclamation also states that the membership trusts their union in the fight for a safe and healthy workplace, free from violence and discrimination; for quality collective agreements and better wages; for better labour legislation, primarily the Labour Law and the Strike Law; for the right to organise, the right to negotiate and organise strikes and protests.

“There is not a single workers’ right that hasn’t been won by unions, and our solidarity with others knows no national boundaries”, points out “Nezavisnost” in the May Day proclamation with the message that “democratic, independent unions are the foundation of democracy and progress in a society”.

Mašina

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