TW
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Dear Sir, I have been following the news on the bus strike on your website with great interest. The reason being that I find some of the reactionary comment in the British press a little worrying.

We (a family group of 18, mixed ages from 2–65) are traveling to Majorca this weekend and are obviously a little concerned as to travel arrangements on arrival. I have taken a holiday in Majorca on four previous occasions and have never encountered a problem of any kind in that time. However, I feel I must comment on this particular strike. The basic right of workers to withdraw their labour to further a just cause is an essential part of employee/employer relations when negotiations are exhausted. But I feel that in this case the bus drivers have done little to court essential public opinion with blanket action of this type. In fact quite the reverse, airport staff, taxi drivers, hoteliers etc, etc will almost certainly feel they could have taken direct action without causing this scale of disruption and tarnishing the reputation of the Islands Europe–wide. Holiday makers perceptions of the Balearics as a trouble free destination will be difficult to change now.

Those holidaymakers caught up in this will have their own views on the causes and problems faced, but their is no doubt that a percentage will spend their money elsewhere in future years as a result.

Brian Johnston