What a difference a one-day strike makes

The Indicator from Planet Money

NPR

Business

4.7 • 9.5K Ratings

🗓️ 4 December 2024

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

From retail to fast food to nursing, one-day strikes have been a growing trend over the last decade.

But what makes one-day strikes more or less effective than longer strikes? Do they achieve the same goals?

On today's show, what do short strikes say about union power in the US and what can you accomplish with only 24 hours on the picket line.

Related Episodes:
What the data reveal about U.S. labor unrest
The Indicator Quiz: Labor Edition
The never-ending strike

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Transcript

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0:00.0	NPR.
0:02.0	So, Whalen, let's say the indicator goes on strike.
0:15.0	How long do you think you could last?
0:17.0	Oh, Steven Besaha, I know where this is going.
0:21.6	Last time you asked me when we had a full episode about a strike that went more than
0:26.6	600 days, and I can tell you right now, no way I could last on strike for almost two
0:32.4	years.
0:33.3	Okay, I should have known better than to try to get something past you, but it's totally
0:36.5	fair.
0:37.4	How about, you know, a much shorter strike?
0:40.2	Like, let's say just one month.
0:42.3	I mean, maybe.
0:43.9	That's a long time still, but I think I could do a month easier than a year or more.
0:48.9	How about just one day?
0:51.1	Oh, one day?
0:52.1	Yeah, that's easy.
0:53.0	See you on the picket line.
0:56.2	Yeah, well, Wayland, you're in luck.
1:02.6	One day strikes have been a growing trend over the last decade. This is the indicator from Planet Money. I'm Waylon Wong. And I'm Stephen Besaha from the Gulf State's newsroom. On today's
1:07.7	show, what do short strikes say about union power in the U.S.?
1:11.6	And what can you accomplish with only 24 hours on the picket line?
1:19.0	This message comes from Wise, the app for doing things in other currencies.
	...

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