Boeing staff reject the settlement: the strike continues | EUROtoday

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The staff of Boeing voted Wednesday, Oct. 23, to reject the corporate’s newest contract provide and to proceed a six-week strike that has halted manufacturing of the aerospace large’s key jetliners.

Local union leaders in Seattle mentioned 64 p.c of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers members who voted opposed accepting the proposal. “After 10 years of sacrifice, we still have some ground to make up and we hope to do so by resuming negotiations promptly,” Jon Holden, head of the IAM union’s District 751, mentioned in a press release Wednesday night. “This is democracy in the workplace – and also clear proof that there are consequences when a company mistreats its workers year after year.”

The stalemate and the accidents

The union stalemate is available in an already troublesome yr for Boeing, which has been on the heart of a number of federal investigations after a door panel blew off a 737 Max aircraft throughout an Alaska Airlines flight in January. The strike disadvantaged the corporate of cash wanted to ship new planes to airways. The firm mentioned it posted a third-quarter lack of greater than $6 billion.

The provide rejected on Wednesday referred to as for wage will increase of 35% over 4 years. The model that union members rejected after they voted to strike final month referred to as for a 25 p.c elevate over 4 years. The union, which had initially referred to as for pay rises of 40% over three years, mentioned the annual will increase beneath the revised provide would quantity to 39.8% when added collectively. Boeing mentioned the typical annual pay for machinists is at present $75,608. Boeing staff instructed Associated Press reporters {that a} sticking level was the corporate’s refusal to reinstate a conventional pension plan that was frozen a decade in the past.