Somedays in the travel industry it seems like it would be simpler to list the countries where someone ISN’T on strike.
As I write this, for example one travel agent newsletter has stories about Uruguay’s air traffic controllers striking to protest salaries, Finnair’s cabin crew being on strike and airport workers in Manila threatening to strike.
Not to mention a suit being brought by travelers against Spanish air traffic controllers for last weekend’s wildcat strike, which seriously disrupted travel in the country.
Still, all in all, most foreign trips go off without a hitch, or at least a strike-related hitch. However, there’s almost no way to guarantee a strike won’t affect your business trip or vacation.
While travel agents sometimes know in advance about strikes, especially if airline workers are involved, neither travel agents nor passengers can get all the updates on all labor issues.
Sometimes it’s not travel industry employees whose strikes can cause the problems. Transit workers, museum employees and others can all ruin your whole trip if they decide not to show up at work.
In one famous incident some years back, the Italian government ordered the Uffizi galleries to stay open longer hours due to long lines and waits for tourists, and the gallery employees went on strike in protest.
So what is a traveler to do? The easiest way to see the possibility of worker discontent? Read. A week or so before your trip, if you are visiting somewhere with an English-language newspaper, start checking it out.
The most recent London Underground strike, for example, may not have been big news in the U.S., but it was all over the Guardian and the Times, before and while it happened.
For countries or cities with no readable newspaper, a little internet work will get you plenty of local news and information. Come to think about it, even if there isn’t news about a labor dispute or potential strike, it can’t hurt to know a little bit about what’s going on in a place you are planning to visit.
In fact, while U.S. government travel advisories may alert travelers to potential issues and problems, local news will often give more details.
Having some clue about a place you are visiting, besides what’s in a guidebook, is not only likely to be helpful, it can be just plain fun.
Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
