Labor Strikes From Hollywood to Paris

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BILL WOLFF (Announcer): From NPR News in New York, this is THE BRYANT PARK PROJECT.

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ROBERT SMITH, host:

This is THE BRYANT PARK PROJECT from NPR News. I'm Robert Smith, filling in for Luke Burbank.

ALISON STEWART, host:

I'm Alison Stewart. It's Tuesday, November 20th. And, you know, I like to walk home sometimes - walking by Macy's on my way home.

SMITH: Uh-huh.

STEWART: And the world's on sale.

SMITH: The world is on sale. You know…

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STEWART: The world is on sale, I'd just like you to know that.

SMITH: …I'm usually a news reporter and one of the frustrating things about holidays is you have to do the same stories over and over again. Hey, did you know the airport traffic is bad…

STEWART: Really?

SMITH: …around Thanksgiving?

STEWART: I can imagine.

SMITH: Did you know a lot of people are going to shop on Friday?

STEWART: Wow.

SMITH: And here's the most frustrating one: Oh, well, I guess, we're going to have a really bad holiday shopping season this year because oil prices are high. Oh, but wait a minute, another prediction says sales will be up 4 percent. So what is it? Every year, they say shopping is going to be terrible and every year, sales go up. One industry analyst - I love it - he said yesterday, you might as well use a crystal ball. Look, everyone has got the same number of relatives. We always spend more than we make, so what's the big deal? Why try to predict it? Why don't we just wait a month and a half, and everybody will say, oh, it's the best Christmas season ever?

STEWART: I think that gentleman might be on to something.

On today's show, really fascinating poll out of Cuba. It was done in secret. It's really interesting. They interviewed Cubans in 14 to 15 provinces about what kind of government they would like. And the results of this poll done in furtive manner, very different from polls where people identified themselves as pollsters. We'll get into how they actually - the methodology behind this poll and if it has any sort of a political agenda too.

SMITH: I'm totally curious about it.

And in my hand, I have THE BRYANT PARK dollar. I minted our own currency this morning…

STEWART: That's just ridiculous.

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SMITH: …but is that legal? We had reports over the weekend that the Liberty Dollar, another alternative currency, people who made that were raided and the dollar is taken away because, you know what, the federal government makes money not people like us.

STEWART: Yeah.

SMITH: So we will talk to an economist to say, what the heck is legal and what isn't because if this is legal, we're going to be rich.

STEWART: Yeah. They don't like it when you make money in your backyard.

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STEWART: Also, we're going to talk about eco-friendly fashion. An award-winning designer Rogan Gregory is here, sitting right outside of our studio. We'll talk a little bit more about his design line.

We'll also go to Rachel Martin for today's headlines in just a moment.

But first, here is the BPP's big story.

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Unidentified Man: This is the "CBS Evening News" with Katie Couric.

Ms. KATIE COURIC (Anchor, CBS Evening News): Hi, everyone. I'm very happy to be with you tonight. For many Americans today, it was back to work and back to school. But in the war on terror…

STEWART: Well, Ms. Couric may have to start writing her own intros on the "Evening News" if writers from her show and other CBS News, TV and radio programs go on strike. And 81 percent of that network's writers, editors, production staff and graphic artists seem ready to do so. CBS News writers, who are members of the Writers Guild of America, last night announced their vote to authorize a strike against CBS. The writers have worked for more than two and a half years without a contract and this vote is the first step toward a full on work stoppage.

SMITH: When and if the CBS News writers go on strike, they'll be joining, of course, the larger group of WGA writers currently striking to get more money from DVD and online sales.

STEWART: Well, if that's not enough picket signs for you, New York theater district is the scene of another strike. With the breakdown of talks between stagehands' union and producers' league, the Broadway theater strike is now in its 11th day. With no end in sight, the city guesses losses in tens and millions of dollars because of the ripple effect the Broadway strike is having on the tourism industry.

SMITH: You know, sales are up for picket signs and it's not just here in the U.S. striking also the tactic du jour in France.

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SMITH: It's not a holiday there without striking. Who do we got this time? Teachers, postal workers, newspaper distributors and other civil servants began a one-day strike today in solidarity with protesting transportation workers. They're challenging the economic reforms proposed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy with issues ranging from pension reform to the cost of living. These strikes, the French ones, have disrupted schools, trains, postal services, air travel and are the biggest threat to Sarkozy's planned reforms since he was elected president in May. The estimated cost to France, 300 to 400 million euros a day.

STEWART: Now even neighboring Germany is on the strike bandwagon. The train drivers' union staged the country's biggest rail strike ever last week. Those lasted up to 62 hours and caused widespread chaos, costing the country at least 75 million euros. There is the threat of another strike looming, but talks are scheduled for tomorrow between the government and the union about the demand increases in wages.

SMITH: Are we the last people working in the world?

(Soundbite of laughter)

STEWART: This show not on strike, but that is the BPP's big story.

Now, here's Rachel Martin with even more news.

Hi, Rachel.

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