U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye today urged unions not to strike given the rising cost of oil and the struggling economy.

Inouye, D-Hawaii, said he met with labor and management representatives earlier in the day and told them now would be poor timing for a work stoppage.

"They were unhappy. But I told them now is not the time to show your unhappiness and disrupt the economy. Hold off for a while," Inouye said before some 1,000 businessmen and women at the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii's annual luncheon.

He declined afterward to say which union group he met with.

Hawai'i's senior senator said the islands will overcome slumping tourism, rising airline ticket prices and having to pay extra for checked bags.

But he predicted oil prices will stay high longer than most people expect.

"If there was a time when the phrase 'Let's get together. Let's work together' makes good sense, now is the time," Inouye said. "And my labor friends — and they're good friends of mine — now is not the time to strike. This is the time to work together."

The senator echoed other Hawaii politicians, including Republican Gov. Linda Lingle, in saying the islands should harness solar and wind energy resources.

"We have to depend upon the sun, wind, the water. Let's take advantage of it," Inouye said.

On a personal note, the senator said it's fabulous being married, noting it's been "one month and two days" since his wedding.

The 83-year-old Inouye tied the knot with Irene Hirano, the president and chief executive of the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.

"I'm very happy," Inouye said, even though he and his wife have to juggle their respective schedules and three residences in Hawaii, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

"She's a very busy gal," Inouye said.

Hirano is resigning her museum position, but she still sits on the boards of the Ford Foundation, the Kresge Foundation and the Smithsonian Institution.

"I see her once in a while," he joked with a smile.