The final Boeing 747 begins to peek out from the factory floor as a tug pulls it Dec. 6.
Photo by Michael Whitney.
Boeing production workers at Washington state’s plants walked off Friday on strike after rejecting a negotiated contract Sept. 12 they say didn’t meet their expectations.
On Tuesday, after press time, negotiations restarted. Federal mediators have been assigned to work together with the company and the union.
Thousands of Boeing production workers collectively voted down the contract by 94.4% and more than 95% voted to strike. In Everett, the localized vote to reject was by 95.5%, and yes to strike was 97%, from an unconfirmed photo the Tribune saw.
The union began this weekend giving employees “strike pay” debit cards and workers are picketing.
Disagreement with the tentative agreement negotiated between Boeing leaders and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 751union led to the rejection of ratifying the contract.
The company and union leaders had been negotiating for weeks, forging a full tentative agreement for the first time since the last major contract in 2008, which had been extended more than once. The 2008 contract was hashed out after nearly an eight-week strike.
The negotiated version for a four-year contract included a gradual 25% pay raise, better health care benefits in 2025, reduced mandatory overtime and a commitment to build the next-generation commercial plane in Washington state versus elsewhere if by 2028. However, it also removed the safety-focused AMPP bonus program, among other issues, according to employees.
It’s understood the union initially sought a gradual 40% pay raise, no mandatory overtime and a restoration of the Boeing pension after its closure 10 years ago, among other bargaining issues.
The Boeing Co. said in a statement that it will get back to negotiating.
“The message was clear that the tentative agreement we reached with IAM leadership was not acceptable to the members,” the company said. “We remain committed to resetting our relationship with our employees and the union and we are ready to get back to the table to reach a new agreement.”
IAM 751 leaders encouraged its members to ratify the negotiated agreement.
Post-vote, the president of the international IAM itself, Brian Bryant, cheered the rejection.
“Their ‘no’ vote was a clear mandate. Boeing must stop undervaluing its workforce,” Bryant said in a statement “Our members deserve a contract that reflects their hard work and sacrifices.”
Boeing’s chief financial officer Brian West was quoted saying at a Morgan Stanley-run investor conference that “From a financial perspective, any impact is going to be dictated by the duration of the work stoppage,” adding that “a strike will impact production and deliveries and operations and will jeopardize our recovery. Our immediate focus is to be laser-like focused on actions to conserve cash, and we will,” according to a transcript of the meeting published by the respected online aerospace journal Leeham News and Analysis.
