Already in turmoil after several accidents, Boeing is now facing its first major strike in 16 years, with the start on Friday of a vast social movement which will block its production at its cradle on the American northwest coast.
The strike was scheduled to begin at midnight local time, according to the IAM-District 751 machinists union, hours after Boeing workers in the Seattle area voted overwhelmingly to walk out.
According to Bloomberg, hundreds of workers began a picket line overnight at the Renton plant, near Seattle, where the 737 Max, the American aircraft manufacturer’s flagship aircraft, is produced.
On Thursday, workers rejected the new labor agreement proposed by the aircraft manufacturer by 94.6 percent, said Jon Holden, president of the IAM-District 751 machinists union.
They also voted 96 percent in favor of striking when the current 16-year-old contract expires at midnight Thursday. A two-thirds vote was needed to initiate a work stoppage.
The union, which represents about 33,000 workers in the Pacific Northwest, had initially supported the deal. Holden had previously said he could not “guarantee that we will get more by striking.”
The strike is expected to shut down two major aircraft assembly plants in the Puget Sound region. It will paralyze production of the 737, 777 and 767 freighter, whose deliveries are already running behind schedule.
A situation that is all the more problematic since the aircraft manufacturer collects the largest part of the payment (around 60%) when the aircraft are handed over.
Boeing still ready to negotiate
Despite the massive vote in favor of the strike, the Boeing group said in a statement that it was “committed” to negotiations.
“We remain committed to rebuilding our relationships with our employees and the union, and we are prepared to return to the negotiating table to reach a new agreement,” the aircraft manufacturer said.
The last strike at the American aircraft manufacturer, in 2008, lasted 57 days.
A 50-day strike would cost Boeing $3 billion to $3.5 billion in cash and impact revenue by $5.5 billion, according to TD Cowen analysts. The company’s stock was down nearly 4 percent in premarket trading on Friday.
Thursday’s vote marked a decisive rejection of a deal that workers said was far less generous than Boeing executives had said. It included a 25% wage increase over four years, a commitment to invest in the region and to build the next plane — scheduled for 2035 — in the planemaker’s historic home, which was supposed to provide jobs for decades.
“Sold off”
Boeing had hoped the concessions would be enough to stave off a strike. Its financial situation has been precarious since the crash of two 737 MAX 8s in 2018 and 2019, which killed 346 people, and a host of production quality problems.
It is notably subject to increased supervision after the loss of a door cap in mid-flight in early January on an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9.
“It’s no secret that our business is going through a difficult time, partly because of our own past mistakes. […] “A strike would jeopardize our joint recovery,” warned Kelly Ortberg on Wednesday evening, who succeeded Dave Calhoun as CEO of the American aircraft manufacturer on August 8.
He had urged employees not to “sacrifice” future progress because of “frustrations from the past.”
But the disgruntled consider the salary increase too far removed from the union’s demands (+40% initially) and the pensions section unsatisfactory.
A week after taking office, Mr. Ortberg had pledged to “reset” the relationship with the IAM. But upon reading the agreement, many union members reacted negatively and called for a work stoppage.
“We’ve been sold off,” Kamie Bryan, a Boeing employee for 18 years, told AFP on Thursday after voting against the deal and for the strike. “We shouldn’t take the few pennies they give us and be grateful,” she said, stressing the magnitude of “the boss’s income.”
“They’re talking about a 25 percent raise, but it’s not,” said Paul Janousek, an Everett electrician who voted to strike after he called Boeing’s presentation “misleading.” The 55-year-old, a 13-year Boeing employee, said his actual raise would be about 9 percent, given the elimination of the annual bonus.
Televisions showed daily gatherings of workers protesting in factories against wage measures they consider inadequate in the face of inflation.
After strikes in the automobile, entertainment and other sectors, the unions are now engaged in a new showdown.
The IAM’s rules provide that strikers receive $250 per week starting in the third week of work stoppage.