Nov. 4 (UPI) — Boeing’s machinists’ union members will vote on a new contract proposal on Monday that offers a 38% pay increase over the course of the contract but still does not include the pension change the union had demanded.
The pay increase is sharply better than the 25% the union turned down before going on strike nearly two months ago but just slightly improved from the 35% the 32,000-member union had turned down in its latest vote.
The strike, in its 53rd day, has crippled Boeing’s union factories. Members will vote through 7 p.m. PST, with the tally to be announced at its Seattle Union Hall and website. Union members said if the agreement passes, members can return to work as early as the first shift on Wednesday.
The machinist’s average pay, according to Boeing, would be $119,309 by the end of the offered contract. Many of the union workers in the Seattle area, where most of the airplanes are made, had complained about inflation and the rising cost of living in the area.