Talks between Boeing and the union representing 33,000 striking machinists have broken down with the two sides blaming each other for refusing to compromise, leaving little hope that the walkout now entering its fourth week will be resolved anytime soon.
By Lori Aratani
“Unfortunately, the union did not seriously consider our proposals,” she continued. “Instead, the union made nonnegotiable demands far in excess of what can be accepted if we are to remain competitive as a business. Given that position, further negotiations do not make sense at this point and our offer has been withdrawn.”
In a statement posted on their website, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers districts 751 and W24 blasted the company for refusing to go beyond the “best and final” offer it made last month that included a 30 percent pay increase over four years and a $6,000 signing bonus.
“The company was hell-bent on standing on the non-negotiated offer that was sent directly to the media on Sept. 23, 2024,” the union wrote.
IAM District 751 President Jon Holden blamed the breakdown in negotiations on Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, who had pledged to fix the fractured relationship between the company and its employees when he took over in August.
“This is on him,” Holden said in an interview. “Either he doesn’t understand labor relations, or he’s getting bad advice.”
With the help of federal mediators, the two sides met Monday and Tuesday at a hotel in downtown Seattle to see if they could reach a deal. It was their third meeting since machinists voted overwhelmingly last month to reject Boeing initial offer of a 25 percent wage increase over four years. The union is seeking a 40 percent pay increase. The last strike by machinists in 2008 lasted 54 days.
The stalemate between Boeing and its largest employee union comes as the company is facing multiple legal, safety and financial crises. The strike has halted production of some of the company’s best-selling jets, further adding to its woes.
Analysts estimate that the strike could be costing Boeing $1 billion a week. The company, also at risk of a downgrade to its credit rating, has taken steps to reduce expenses, including instituting furloughs for all U.S.-based employees, imposing a hiring freeze and eliminating all unnecessary travel.
The labor crisis is among multiple serious challenges the company has faced this year. Boeing representatives are scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on Friday in a hearing on a settlement it reached with the Justice Department tied to fatal crashes of 737 Max jets in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopia in 2019 that killed 346 people. Boeing agreed to plead guilty to one count of fraud in connection with the crashes after Justice Department officials determined that it had breached the conditions of a deferred-prosecution agreement that would have insulated it from criminal prosecutions. Families of the victims oppose the settlement.
In connection with that case, the New York Times reported that newly unsealed documents showed that while Boeing offered detailed briefings to U.S. pilots about a software system linked to the Lion Air crash in October 2018, it did not offer similar briefings to pilots at Ethiopian Airlines despite a request from the carrier’s chief pilot.
