Happy International Women's Day, 8 March

In the early twentieth century thousands of women in New York's garment workshops stood at their machines for well over ten hours a day for far less pay than men. In 1908 they marched through the streets demanding shorter hours, better wages and the right to vote. The image of seamstresses carrying banners down the avenue became the first landmark in the story of 8 March.

A year later the Socialist Party of America held a National Woman's Day on 28 February 1909. That same winter a strike by women garment workers lasted for weeks and forced many factory owners to give ground. From then on, demands about hours, pay and women's voices reached far beyond a single city.

In August 1910 the Second International Conference of Socialist Women met in Copenhagen, Denmark, with more than a hundred delegates from seventeen countries. Clara Zetkin, a German activist, proposed that every year there should be one shared day on which women everywhere would speak up for equality and the vote. The conference approved her proposal unanimously.

On 19 March 1911 the first celebrations took place in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, drawing more than a million people. Women called for the right to work, to vocational training, to hold public office and to fair treatment at work. At the time the date was not fixed, and each country chose its own day in spring.

On 8 March 1917, which was 23 February on the Julian calendar Russia still used, women textile workers in Petrograd went on strike under the slogan of bread and peace amid war and hunger. The protest spread across the city and became the spark of the February Revolution. From then on many countries adopted 8 March as their shared day.

In 1975, International Women's Year, the United Nations began marking 8 March. In 1977 the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 32/142, inviting states to devote a day each year to women's rights and international peace. 8 March thus became the most widely celebrated version of the day around the world.

For Vietnamese people, 8 March is also linked to the Trưng Sisters' uprising. In the spring of the year 40, Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị raised their banner at Mê Linh, drove out the Eastern Han troops and the governor Tô Định, and won back self-rule for the country. The Trưng Sisters are honoured on the 6th day of the second lunar month, which often falls close to 8 March.

On 20 October 1930 the Anti-Imperialist Women's Association of Indochina was founded, the forerunner of today's Vietnam Women's Union. The 1946 Constitution stated that women are equal to men in every respect. In 2006 the National Assembly passed the Law on Gender Equality, the basis for policies on jobs, pay and promotion for women workers.

The splendid land of Vietnam has grown more beautiful and radiant thanks to our women, young and old, who weave and embroider it with all their strength.

President Hồ Chí Minh

Today, 8 March in Vietnam usually starts with bouquets on desks, handwritten cards and greetings from male colleagues. At home, children give their mothers a small gift and husbands take over the kitchen. In many companies the trade union hosts a gathering, hands out gifts and honours women who stood out during the year.

Beyond flowers and gifts, 8 March is a chance to look at what women need at work: maternity provisions, flexible hours for parents of young children, equal pay and equal chances of promotion. The 2019 Labour Code devotes a whole chapter to women workers and gender equality, reminding every business that appreciation should last the whole year.