Boeing and leaders from a union representing striking machinists have reached a deal that could end a strike that began on September 13.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 751 said on Saturday that it had received “a negotiated proposal and resolution to end the strike” with the help of Acting US Secretary of Labor Julie Su.
It said members would vote on Wednesday on the contract deal, which includes a 35% general wage increase spread over four years, a one-time bonus of $7,000, and enhanced contributions to 401(k) retirement plans.
About 33,000 Boeing workers have been on strike in the Pacific Northwest for over a month, halting much of Boeing’s production.
Boeing’s business has been hobbled by the strike, with the company losing an estimated $1 billion a month.
CEO Kelly Ortberg announced plans to cut 17,000 jobs and sell up to $25 billion in stock or debt to plug a cash drain. The company has warned of a $6 billion quarterly loss.
Ortberg has been trying to avert a prolonged shutdown that would not only drain Boeing’s finances but also squeeze key suppliers and result in supplier cutbacks that would slow the company’s ability to resume production levels.
The factories have been idle for more than a month, which has started to ripple through Boeing’s sprawling network of suppliers. On Friday, Spirit AeroSystems said it would furlough 700 workers. Boeing has agreed to buy Spirit, a troubled supplier of fuselages.
The union’s 33,000 members assemble the company’s bestselling 737 jets in factories in the Seattle area. Their wages, which average about $75,000, haven’t kept up with the cost of living in the area.
Boeing employee Garrett Dress, 20, hired last July, said he opposed the original deal because workers needed a bigger pay bump to maintain a basic quality of life in the expensive Pacific Northwest.
“Where we’re coming up short with the contract, I know that people need that more than ever,” he said recently as he walked a picket line outside Boeing’s 737 factory in Renton, Wash.
The latest offer doesn’t restore pensions, which was a key demand of many members, but something union leaders had said might be out of reach. Boeing would increase company 401(k) contributions, including a one-time payment of $5,000 to all workers’ retirement accounts.
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