WenWe's description of the BA '89 dispute is exactly the same as the '77 strike when BA kept going for three weeks on management sign-offs. The strike broke, just as management anticipated, when the employees monthly "Mortgage Payment Day" came around. When we got back to work we got the lost money back on the overtime needed to clear the deferral backlogs, but the strike was a lost cause and we never did get the pay deal we wanted.
The fact is that a strike is useless unless the employees can keep on paying their bills for longer than the company. The airline can keep flying for a surprising amount of time using deferrals and management sign-offs. The '77 strike also illustrates what can happen to a union organiser who tries to stir up public fears on safety. He risks expensive legal action and loss of job. Much better to keep talking, and certainly more likely to achieve better wages and conditions.
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Through difficulties to the cinema