Originally Posted by
MissM
MrBunker
I agree that we can never know every person's reason(s) for striking or not striking. I just think that crew would vote more sensibly. If they are willing to strike, they should vote yes. If they are not, they should vote no. This is why the last ballots have been very strong in numbers and it does indicate that there is a sense of disagreement amongst the crew. Something is wrong when the majority vote for industrial action but the support for the actual strike is not as strong. They should go hand in hand.
That observation is present during non-striking times. Many crew will say what the majority wants to hear. Although, it is becoming easier to spot striking and non-striking crew onboard.
I agree wholeheartedly with your observations above. My personal suspicions are a great deal of eligible voters ticked the box for a strike in the hope they'd never have to follow it through. When called upon to stand by their decision, I guess a great number didn't do so. On a purely hypothetical level (one where this is not about BA but the behaviour of union members in a ballot) that's not the most noble of behaviours. A vote that accurately reflected the number of people who were prepared to follow through with strike action might have led the whole dispute in a different direction.
MrB