In the event that 33,000 workers in the Seattle area vote against a new contract that has incensed many despite significant wage increases, Boeing might face a potentially devastating walkout.
Under the direction of its new CEO, Kelly Ortberg, the beleaguered aviation behemoth had hoped that a promise to invest in the Puget Sound region and a 25 percent pay increase spread over four years would prevent a strike at a time when Boeing’s finances are still fragile following a number of catastrophes.
However, the majority of the rank-and-file has responded harshly, despite the preliminary contract receiving support from officials of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 751.
Reports from the media in the Seattle area have shown images of workers on the production line staging daily protests and criticizing the salary increases as being insufficient given the rate of inflation.
Following hundreds of criticism and calls for a walkout, a Sunday post on the IAM’s Facebook page announcing the agreement was taken down.
A strike would halt Boeing production assembly sites for the 737 MAX and 777, significantly delaying the company’s turnaround efforts.
Two of the main issues are that the new agreement does not restore pensions and the pay increase is not as high as the forty percent that IAM had demanded.
IAM President Jon Holden told members what happens next is up to union members.
“We have achieved everything we could in bargaining, short of a strike,” Holden said in a message to workers.
“We recommended acceptance because we can’t guarantee we can achieve more in a strike,” Holden said. “But that is your decision to make and is a decision that we will protect and support, no matter what.”
Stephanie Pope, president of Boeing’s commercial plane division, said the contract delivers the largest-ever wage hike despite the company’s $60 billion in debt. The pledge to the Puget Sound region is an “unprecedented commitment” to the area.
Ortberg cautioned against a strike in a statement released on Wednesday night, stating that it would “put our shared recovery in jeopardy, further eroding trust with our customers and hurting our ability to determine our future together.”
The aviation website Leeham News stated that the new deal is a “hard sell.” “The deal makes progress in the areas IAM members identified as priorities, but falls short of the union’s stated goals in most of them.”
Though Leeham said it was unclear whether opponents of the deal would secure a two-thirds majority on a second question of whether to strike, he projected that the contract would not pass by a majority vote.
IAM regulations state that in the event that the contract fails to receive a majority but a strike vote is also unsuccessful, the contract offer is automatically accepted.
Holden declared, “At this point, I think it will be voted down, and our members will vote to strike,” in an interview that was published on Monday in the Seattle Times.
