May End Three-Month Strike

Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) currently striking Boeing's aerospace and military facilities in Alabama, California and Florida are expected to vote Wednesday on a new contract.

"We feel it was a good, competitive offer and we'll see how the vote goes on Wednesday," said Boeing spokesman Dan Beck to Bloomberg News.

As Aero-News reported last year, the strike began November 2nd -- just as Boeing was celebrating its efforts to avert a strike by members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA). Approximately 1,500 machinists involved in the manufacture of Boeing's Delta launch rockets (file photo, below) walked off the job at lines in Huntsville and Decatur, AL; Huntington Beach and Torrance, CA, and Cape Canaveral, FL.

Some workers crossed picket lines last month, when their medical insurance benefits expired December 2. Many remain out of work, though -- and there's no guarantee the vote will convince them to return to their jobs.

"It's up to my members, they'll have a vote and they'll speak," said union spokesman said Bob Wood.

Wood told Bloomberg the proposed contract contains lowered insurance deductibles and some caps on insurance premium costs. As a tradeoff, should future Boeing workers retire before age 65, they will get no medical coverage from the company until Medicare kicks in -- unless they pay for it themselves.

FMI: www.iamaw.org, www.boeing.com