Have your plans changed due to the upcoming winter strikes?

14 comments

1. 100% support them. Year after year of below inflation pay rises and now we see CEOs get 35% payrises while the workers get shafted. Even if you cant strike, other people striking raises the median wage which will impact you and lift your wage up. I dont mind rich people being rich or getting more rich, but not if it means screwing the workers who got them there.

2. Everyday feels like a strike when you have to travel with Transpennine tbh. I would barely notice a strike.

3. Not really. For train strikes I just fit my work from home days round it during the week and arrange social plans around it when it’s on weekends. There’s been enough notice that I’ve not really had a problem making alternative plans. A bit of inconvenience for me isn’t much in the wider context of what they’re fighting for.

   None of the other strikes particularly impact me.

   I support them all though, even when it does inconvenience me.

4. Not unless I’m suddenly taken ill, which isn’t likely.

5. My plans have been changed with most of the (railway) strike action over the past few months.

   However I seem to have booked trains which narrowly avoid this strike. Though they will be busier. If not I’ll have to drive.

   Support the strikers though.

6. I always support people to do what they feel is right.

   Bit confused by driving instructors though, thought they were mainly self employed.

7. Well you could start a union for your work. Unions are not exclusive to public sector work. The public sector workers are currently striking due to over a decade of underfunding. But the historic impact of unions (paid holiday, sick leave etc) were won across private and public sectors. Any size company can recognise a union and if a company has 21 staff you can apply for union representation even if the company doesn’t want it. And if you are in a small company getting unique n membership gives you extra peace of mind in case your work goes sour for any reason.

   If you feel your conditions are unfair then working with a union can help you get that 10%.

   Personally I fully support all the current rounds of strike action. No one strikes easily, it’s a tough decision but I trust if they are striking they have good reasons.

8. I remember the Winter of Discontent, and so don’t support mass industrial action.

   Its effects on me are negligible. Most communication is via e-mail, most parcels are delivered via courier. I work from home and so I’ve not travelled by train in years.

9. Any pay rises won’t be instant. The last one for the NHS took nearly a year and it trickled through.

   I think people just see it as a pay rise strike but it’s so much more than that. It’s quality of life for people who provide an essential service. I am very pro-strike. It may inconvenience me, but seeing more food banks and more people struggling would hurt a lot more.

10. Support them 100%. Doesn’t impact my plans but if it did, an inconvenience is fine, would still support them

11. I’m desperately hoping the driving examiners don’t end up striking, as I’m currently waiting to hear whether my driving test will be cancelled because of it. I booked it back in July and the next availability isn’t until May, although hoping I’d be able to pick up a cancellation before then. I started lessons in 2020 and ended up having to have about 6 months off due to lock downs, during which it took me over a year to actually get a theory booked in and sat because of the backlogs, then my instructor quit and it was a nightmare finding a new one. I’m just absolutely over it now and want my test done and out the way (and hopefully passed).

    That said, I support anyone striking and hope they all get what they’re wanting.

12. I’ve never really understood how this form of striking is in any way effective…

    They schedule a few days off, still turn up, and have a set amount of days when they’ll be back to work.

    Why don’t these people just refuse to work right now, indefinitely until they get a payrise? it would get much better, and much faster results.

13. Multiple trains cancelled, support them though.

14. Getting home from uni will be quite a challenge. I think I’ll have to leave pretty early and miss out on even more after the teaching strikes too :(( just stressed about the amount I pay for this…

    I support strikes and I think it’s a valid thing to do, but doesn’t mean it isn’t really annoying.