A 767 seen in production at Everett, Washington, August 6, 2007.
Photo by David Axe derivative work: Altair78 (talk) - Boeing_767_Everett,_Washington_production_line.jpg, Creative Commons BY-SA 2.0 license
Boeing assemblers began returning to work late last week after ratifying a new four-year contract in a vote Monday, Nov. 4.
The vote was 59% in favor.
It ended the 52-day strike in Washington, Oregon and California by members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Districts 751 and W24.
From the outset, the union sought a 40% wage increase and to restore pensions.
The new deal offers a compounded 43% wage increase, but no pensions.
This was the first time the whole contract was reopened in more than 10 years.
This fall, the machinists didn’t ratify two past contracts presented to them. The first one was rejected by more than 90%.
In October, Boeing announced it would cut 10% of its workforce, or 17,000 people. Even with the contract signed, it will proceed with these layoffs. The Seattle Times reported it thinks the layoffs would be heaviest among white-collar employees.
The Reuters news service reported the SPEEA engineers’ union said it will see who’s getting the layoff notices Nov. 15. The layoffs would be 60-day layoffs. Those cuts would come from employees ranked in the lowest retention rankings within each division. Managers determine retention rankings, according to SPEEA’s frequently asked questions webpage.
Machinists union leaders issued a joint statement that “frontline Boeing workers have used their voices, their collective power, and their solidarity to do what is right, to stand up for what is fair – and to win.”
U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su was involved as a mediator for the latest contract.
Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin cheered the news.
“I want to commend IAM 751 President Jon Holden and the union’s bargaining committee for working in good faith to successfully negotiate a strengthened contract for their 33,000 members,” Franklin said in a statement.
