Marketplace: News Archives

Friday, September 1, 2000
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It's Friday, the 1st of September. I'm David Brancaccio.

It's an off-road landscape turning to quicksand for Bridgestone-Firestone, whose heavy-duty tires have been officially linked to 88 deaths in the U.S. and many others around the world. Just as it's struggling to replaced 6.5 million tires that have been recalled, union workers at Bridgestone-Firestone plan to go on strike at midnight central time tonight if there's no agreement on a new contract. And today federal highway safety authorities issued a warning to consumers about problems with 1.4 million more tires not subject to the recall. U.S. officials say they urged the manufacturer to broaden the recall but Bridgestone-Firestone refused. The list of tires subject to the government's consumer warning is long and detailed, so click on the link below to go to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As for the threatened strike, more than 8,000 workers at nine Firestone plants in the U.S. could join a walkout. Dan Bailey is a labor attorney and former president of a Firestone union local in Laverne, Tennessee.

Bailey: "We're here today because this company just doesn't get it. It just doesn't get the fact that workers of the 21st century are not going to sit back and let this company take away, piece by piece, all the rights the workers of the 20th century fought, sacrificed and, in some cases, died for. We're not going to let that happen. We can't let that happen."

A company spokeswoman is quoted saying Firestone remains hopeful a deal can be reached before the deadline. Gary Chasen is a professor of labor management relations at Clark University.

Chasen: "The workers aren't negotiating for the traditional subject matter of health benefits, seniority and pension benefits and improved work loads. But if in fact they so damage the company at this crucial time that it's survival is threatened, then they may end up winning the battle but losing the war. The company is extremely vulnerable and wants to reach a settlement badly. But, on the other hand, a prolonged strike or a strike that's out of control could result in lasting damage to Bridgestone-Firestone."

President Clinton today put off a decision to deploy a proposed $60 billion national missile defense system designed to protect the country against a nuclear attack. Clinton said critical rocket tests had yet to be done and that they still needed to figure out how to cope with countermeasures like decoys.

Clinton: "There is a reasonable chance that all these challenges can be met in time, but I simply cannot conclude with the information I today that we have enough confidence in the technology and the operational effectiveness of the entire NMD system to move forward to deployment."

This decision has pleased many critics of the plan including Lawrence Kraus, Chairman of the Physics Department at Case Western Reserve University. He argued the plan doesn't make sense politically or technologically.

Kraus: "The only argument behind it is some vague desire to build an impenetrable shield. It's a great state desire, but as one of my colleagues said, 'We'd all like to have a light beer that tastes good but some things are beyond technology.'"

Kraus argues that the multi-billion dollar price tag to test the system could be better spent on more open-ended scientific research. But he acknowledges it's tough to compete against easy-to-digest concepts like "Star Wars."

Kraus: "Star Wars, even by its name, was brought forth by a president who was very strongly influenced by the movies. It sounds like a great idea and no starship worth it's salt flies through space without an impenetrable shield."

Though Clinton is signaling that Starship Earth isn't ready for Star Wars just yet, he did promise ongoing testing and development on the program.

And in other Marketplace news today, while gasoline prices have moderated as the summer wore on, prices going into this holiday weekend are about 25 cents more a gallon than they were on this weekend one year ago. In August prices averaged $1.50 a gallon, which means if you're driving 1,000 miles this weekend, you'll pay $6.10 more in a Toyota Echo subcompact or $15.63 cents more if it's in a Lincoln Navigator SUV and your only driving on a straightaway.

And that's the top of our news for Friday, the 1st of August.