Strikes in Europe: How to Plan Ahead

Imagine you’re all packed and ready for your next big business trip. You grab a cab, head to the airport… but there’s tons of traffic on the road, and when you arrive, you find your flight has been delayed by several hours. In Europe, this is a common scenario, as summer travel is often impacted due to strike action (especially since the COVID-19 pandemic).

Planned strikes happen frequently, and can lead to delays—especially if they involve air traffic controllers, public transport workers, security staff, and other travel workers.

But there’s no need to worry. As long as you think ahead, you can effectively manage the impact of air strikes, rail strikes, and labor shortages on your travel plans.

In some countries, workers are required to give a certain amount of notice before calling a strike, so the good news is, you may know ahead of time when and where a strike is going to take place.

Tools like TravelPerk help business travellers get a handle on what’s happening and where—so you can avoid flight cancellations and delays, and easily manage them if they do happen. 

Read on to learn more about planning for strikes and unexpected circumstances, so you can continue to enjoy all the benefits of business travel and connecting with colleagues in person.  

3 ways to prepare for strikes and keep your business trips on track

1. Proactive Planning

If you know when strikes are going to happen, you’ll be able to plan your trips around them.

Find a trusted news source, and follow it regularly so you can keep up to speed on the most recent developments and strike dates (trade union negotiations on working conditions, pay offers, the retirement age, and other strike-related issues are sometimes rescheduled or canceled.)

Some news sources that are updated regularly in different countries include:

Once you know when strikes are scheduled, work that into your trip plans. Be sure to leave plenty of extra time to get to your destination if you think a strike may interfere with your road, train, or plane travel, especially if you’re headed to a large hub such as Heathrow Airport or Paris Charles de Gaulle. 

2. Leveraging technology

Of course, keeping up with planned strike actions can take a lot of effort. It…