NEW YORK: Boeing workers were voting Thursday on a new contract that has sparked discontent among manufacturing staff, putting the embattled aviation giant on the defensive as it hopes to avert a crippling strike.
The union's roughly 33,000 Seattle-area workers are casting separate votes on whether to accept the contract and whether to strike, with the polls scheduled to close Thursday evening.
A strike could begin after midnight Friday, effectively shuttering two major manufacturing plants in the Puget Sound region.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) in Seattle has a history of striking, with the most recent stoppage in 2008 lasting 57 days.
Led by new CEO Kelly Ortberg, Boeing had hoped a 25-percent wage hike over four years and a commitment to invest in the Puget Sound region would avert a costly strike.
But while the preliminary contract won an endorsement from leaders of IAM District 751, the response from much of the rank-and-file has been harsh.
"Somebody sold us out," said Everett plant worker Kamie Bryan shortly after voting against the contract and in favor of a strike.
Workers had sought a 40 percent wage hike and critics have said the 25 percent figure is inflated because the new deal also eliminates an annual company bonus.
Many employees rely on the annual bonus each February to get by, said Bryan, who inventories and manages plane parts. The bonus is usually about four or five percent of annual pay.
Other points of contention include the deal's failure to restore a pension, as well as a Boeing pledge to build its next plane in the Seattle region, which critics view as a "hollow" commitment to the region because it offers no promises beyond the four-year contract.
Workers have also been turned off by communications from Boeing executives characterizing the contract as a win for workers given the company's stressed financial position.
"We shouldn't take this tiny little coin they're giving us and be thankful," said Bryan, adding: "We're building planes for Boeing. You see how much the CEO makes."
A strike would shutter Boeing production assembly plants for the 737 MAX and 777, further delaying the company's turnaround efforts.
Ortberg acknowledged the company's travails, which were partly due to "our own mistakes," he said in a message to employees Wednesday.
"Working together, I know that we can get back on track, but a strike would put our shared recovery in jeopardy, further eroding trust with our customers and hurting our ability to determine our future together," Ortberg said.
Rank-and-file workers were shocked by the IAM's announcement early Sunday morning endorsing the deal, after union leadership had been saying for weeks the two sides remained very far apart.
The union maintains it endorsed the deal as the best that could be achieved without a strike, adding that "we can't guarantee we can achieve more in a strike," said IAM local president Jon Holden in a letter to members.
But workers are hoping that a strike forces negotiations to resume, resulting in a better deal.
A strike in line with prior Boeing stoppages of around 50 days would cost Boeing $3.0 to $3.5 billion of cash flow, according to a note from investment bank TD Cowen.
Richard Aboulafia, managing director of the AeroDynamic Advisory consultancy, said a lengthy strike would damage Boeing's turnaround prospects, but noted that a 2023 strike at Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems lasted less than two weeks.
"I would think they'd manage to work this out," said Aboulafia.
Boeing has been under renewed scrutiny since a January incident in which a fuselage panel blew out of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX plane mid-flight, necessitating an emergency landing.
The company has slowed production on the MAX as it beefs up quality control, operating under the strict watch of US air safety regulators.
Boosting plane output is at the top of the priorities facing Ortberg, along with winning back the confidence of regulators and airline customers.