A union representing repair technicians at the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing said that its members will vote on Wednesday on a contract renewal agreement that includes a 35% increase in their salaries over a period of four years and would end a strike that has been ongoing for more than a month.
A significant salary increase may include improvements in base wages, as well as other benefits such as pensions, bonuses, and improved working conditions.
About 33,000 unionized workers at Boeing on the West Coast of the United States, most of them in Washington state, have been organizing a strike since September 13, and the work stoppage has led to the disruption of production of the best-selling 737 MAX aircraft, as well as the 767 and 777 wide-body aircraft.
The latest offers include a $7,000 offer approval bonus, the reinstatement of an incentive plan, and increased contributions to retirement plans, including a one-time payment of $5,000 plus other employer payments of up to 12%.
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“We look forward to our employees voting on the negotiated proposal,” Boeing said on Saturday. However, there is no guarantee that workers will accept the offer after they overwhelmingly rejected an initial proposal. “The future of this contract is in your hands,” the union told workers yesterday.
The US Chamber of Commerce had previously appealed via the social networking site X to the two parties to reach an agreement that would put an end to the cessation of vital production for the aviation sector, which prompted Boeing suppliers such as Spirit Aerosystems to announce temporary vacations.
The expected salary increase step may be part of Boeing’s strategy to enhance productivity and regain its position after a series of challenges it has faced in recent years, such as problems with the 737 MAX aircraft and production delays.
If an agreement is reached, this could be a huge boost to worker morale, but it could also put pressure on the company’s costs.
On October 8, Boeing withdrew its enhanced offer, which included a 30% wage increase over 4 years, after the collapse of talks attended by federal mediators. The union was seeking a 40% increase and the restoration of a defined-benefit pension, which was not offered. In proposing a new contract.
Last September, nearly 95% of West Coast workers rejected a temporary agreement offering a 25% pay increase over four years, which union officials approved, prompting a strike.
Last Friday, Boeing announced that it would reduce the number of jobs by 17,000, or 10% of the number of its employees globally, and that it would save $5 billion in costs, in a continuation of the chaos that has been going on for a year in the company after an emergency occurred during the flight of the “737 MAX 9” plane belonging to Alaska Airlines. Airlines.
