I see organized labor is doing its best to beat down Boeing.
Boeing Machinists Authorize Strike
July 13, 2005
By Rachelle Murcia
SEATTLE - About 11,000 Boeing machinists gathered at Safeco Field Wednesday to authorize a strike, if negotiations with the company fail.
The Machinists' Union says the vote, along with votes counted at Portland and Wichita, was 99 percent in favor of the authorization, a procedural move.
Talks began last month for a contract to replace the three-year agreement that expires September 2.
The vote asks the area's nearly 17,000 members if they would authorize a strike if their contract terms weren't met. The vote would also ensure members would get benefits in case of a strike.
The union's main concern this time around is pension. They say the number of older employees is growing, as are health care costs, but the pension is staying the same.
Right now, the pension pays $60 per year served, and they want that bumped to $100 and eliminate early retirement penalties.
"They just recently gave the CEO a $22 million pension bonus," said union member Kent Sprague. "That's kind of a slap in the face for people who have worked diligently and with great skill to make the finest airplanes in the world."
The union is optimistic they will get what they want. They say the morale is generally good -- they have a new CEO, they are selling planes, and several coworkers who have been laid off in the past are coming back to the job. So they believe the company will meet their demands and keep a good thing going.
The union also believes negotiations will go far more smoothly than three years ago in their last contract session which was just after the Sept. 11 attacks and the airline industry took a huge financial hit.
But the strike vote today allows the union to be ready to declare a strike if the contract isn't hammered out by Sept. 1.
In October, Boeing opens talks with the union for engineering employees. That union, SPEEA, represents more than 17,000 workers in the Seattle area |
