Strike will continue as Boeing machinists reject another contract offer

Thousands of Boeing aircraft machinists have rejected a contract offer for the second time in less than two months, meaning a strike that has halted airplane production at the company’s factories around the Puget Sound region for nearly six weeks will go on.

When votes were tallied Wednesday night, 64% of members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers sided against the proposal. While the contract included wage increases that the union said were in line with what workers were looking for, it did not include pension benefits the machinists have sought to restore.

“We have made tremendous gains with this agreement in many of the areas our members said were important to them, however, we have not achieved enough to meet our members’ demands,” IAM District 751 President Jon Holden said just before announcing the vote result at a Seattle union hall. Union members who were there cheered at the outcome.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers represents about 33,000 Boeing employees who are on strike in Washington, Oregon, and California. Workers last month voted down an offer negotiated by union leaders and the company before they walked off the job and onto picket lines on Sept. 13. The earlier contract proposal was rejected by 94.6% of voting members.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2024/10/23/strike-to-continue-as-boeing-machinists-reject-a-second-contract-offer/