In the United States, rank and file members of Boeing鈥檚 largest union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), voted聽resoundingly to reject a tentative agreement, on October 23, and to extend their strike.
Given the November 5 presidential election, this is a setback for President Joe Biden鈥檚 administration, which sent in its Acting Labor Secretary to get a deal before then.
Boeing鈥檚 poor safety and design record over the past six years has severely impacted the company鈥檚 profits. The company reported a US$6.1 billion loss and announced on October 11 its plan to sack 10% of its global workforce over the coming months.
Boeing is also borrowing and selling off shares, hoping to raise $25 billion in funds.
According to , 鈥淏oeing spent $61 billion on stock buybacks between 1998 and 2018, indulging shareholders and company executives instead of investing in its workforce or in airplane production. Those chickens came home to roost when underinvestment in new plane development led to flawed design workarounds, leading to two deadly 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 350 people.鈥
The strike began on September 13 at facilities where the company makes the 737, 767 and 777.
The offer 鈥 which included a 35% wage rise over four years 鈥 was rejected by 64% of voters, according to the union. The IAM represents about 33,000 Boeing workers.
Workers are also holding out for the restoration of their defined benefit pension plan, which was frozen in 2014 and replaced by plan called a 鈥401(k)鈥, which is dependent on the ups and downs of Wall Street.
The defined benefit pension paid a fixed monthly amount for each year worked.
Jon Voss, a mechanic and shop steward at Renton, where he builds wings for the 737, told he calculated that the loss cost him $600,000.
In media interviews, several workers said they voted against the offer because they believe the union should hold out for better wages, retirement, health coverage and other benefits.
Boeing is the world鈥檚 largest commercial aircraft maker, has major military contracts with the US government and employs almost 150,000 people across the country.
The company鈥檚 latest offer included a $7000 sign-on bonus (up from the first offer or $3000), additional contributions to workers鈥 401(k) plans and preserved the company鈥檚 incentive bonus program. But workers argue that slow wage progression and low wage rises over the past decade and a half means they can barely keep up with inflation.
Another issue is Boeing鈥檚 extensive use of overtime. The latest offer banned a second consecutive weekend of mandatory overtime, and limited work days to 10 hours, but still allowed up to 112 hours of mandatory overtime over a three-month period.
Boeing鈥檚 most recent safety incident occurred in January, when a panel fell off a 737 Max jet during an Alaska Airlines flight. Five years ago, two fatal Max crashes led to the global grounding of the plane for nearly two years.
鈥淭his contract struggle began over ten years ago when the company overreached and created a wound that may never heal for many members,鈥 said Jon Holden, president of IAM District 751 in Seattle, in a statement after the vote.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to tell you all how challenging it has been for our membership through the pandemic, the crashes, massive inflation, and the need to address the losses stemming from the 2014 contract.鈥
Negotiations will continue with the company, said the union.