Boeing workers end seven-week strike, ratify new deal

Striking workers at Boeing approved the company's latest contract proposal Monday, ending a more than seven-week stoppage that underscored discontent within the workforce of the beleaguered aviation giant.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 751, which had rejected two prior offers, ratified the latest bid by 59 percent, the union said.

The move will send some 33,000 Seattle-area workers back on the job and restore operations at two major assembly plants.

The contract includes a 38 percent wage hike, a $12,000 signing bonus and provisions to lift employer contributions to a 401K retirement plan and contain health care costs.

However, the contract did not restore Boeing's former pension plan that had been sought by older workers.

Mixed reactions

Jon Holden, head of the Seattle union, described the contract as a win for workers who were determined to make up for more than a decade of stagnant wages from prior negotiations that had enraged many rank-and-file workers.

"The strike will end and now it's our job to get back to work and start building the airplanes, increase the rates and bring this company back to financial success," Holden said at a news conference.

"I'm proud of our members," Holden said. "They've achieved a lot and we're ready to move forward."

Reactions were mixed even among union members who voted to accept the contract.

Although she voted “yes,” Seattle-based calibration specialist Eep Bolano said the outcome is “most certainly not a victory.” Bolano said she and her fellow workers made a wise but infuriating choice to accept the offer.

“We were threatened by a company that was crippled, dying, bleeding on the ground, and us as one of the biggest unions in the country couldn't even extract two-thirds of our demands from them. This is humiliating," she said.

For other workers like William Gardiner, a lab lead for Cal-Cert calibration services, the vote was a cause for celebration.

“I'm extremely pumped over this vote,” said Gardiner, who has worked for Boeing for 13 years. “We didn't fix everything — that's OK. Overall, it's a very positive contract.”