Boeing workers reject latest offer as company says it’s losing tens of millions every day
Boeing staff have rejected the latest 35% pay rise, committing to further strikes as the company faces massive losses and delivery delays.
As many as 33,000 workers at Boeing plants in Washington state, Oregon and California have rejected a proposal to increase wages by just over a third over four years as their union said “after 10 years of sacrifices we still have ground to make up”.
Just hours earlier the plane maker published results showing whopper losses of $6bn (£4.6bn) for just three months in part due to the industrial action as it deals with the fallout of a door blowing off its Alaska Airlines 737 MAX in January and the associated plane delivery delays.
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The cost of machinist walkouts has been estimated to be tens of millions of dollars a day, with one analyst at Aubrey Capital Management, Anna McDonald, putting the figure at a $100m daily hit to the business.
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It is the second offer rejected by members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAW) union. Negotiations will resume “promptly” it said.
What does the union want?
The rejected offer included a $7,000 (£5,390) one-off bonus being on the table along with the retention of performance bonuses that Boeing had wanted to cut and extra retirement contributions.
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Left out was the reintroduction of a defined-benefit pension plan frozen a decade ago which was a priority for many union members.
Employees are seeking to “make up ground for nearly 10 years of stagnant wages and many givebacks that were part of prior negotiations”, the IAW said. “Their strike will continue and the union said it plans to immediately send new dates for further negotiations to the company.”
What happening at Boeing?
One of the US’s biggest exporters, Boeing has struggled with regulatory oversight and component glitches.
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The new chief executive Kelly Ortberg earlier this month announced the loss of 17,000 jobs – 10% of its workforce.