After 53 days on strike, members of International Association of Machinists voted on November 4 to approve Boeing’s third contract offer. The most important gain for workers was a significant wage increase — 38% over four years. Boeing also agreed to bonus payments and increased company contributions to employee 401K plans, but did not restore the defined benefit pension plan that the company ended in 2014.
In an October 23 vote, striking members of District 751 of the International Association of Machinists (IAM) rejected the aerospace giant’s latest contract offer by 64%. The union did not release figures on how many of its 33,000 members cast a ballot. The New York Times headline on the vote referred to the rejection as “resounding.”
This article details how Boeing concealed information on a critical flight-control system in its 737 Max plane. Ethiopian Airlines pilots had requested the information after the 2018 catastrophic crash of the same type of aircraft operated by Lion Air, an Indonesian airline. Soon after the Ethiopian Airlines’ request, a 737 Max operated by this carrier nose-dived after taking off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, killing all 157 people on board. After a lengthy investigation, and facing criminal federal charges, Boeing reached a plea deal with the U.S. Justice Department to pay damages in order to avoid a public trial. Families of many of those killed in these crashes are now trying to block this deal and force the case to a trial.