The American aviation giant Boeing has once again improved the conditions of its contractual offer to thousands of strikers, in the hope of putting an end to a painful strike which has paralyzed its two main factories for seven weeks.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 751, the union that represents more than 33,000 workers who went on strike Sept. 13 in the Seattle area, approved the new offer Thursday and set a vote for Monday.

The offer includes a 38 percent salary increase over the four years of the contract and a $12,000 sign-on bonus, up from $7,000 in the previous proposal, Boeing said in a separate statement.

“Your union supports and recommends the latest IAM/Boeing contract proposal. It is time for our members to consolidate these gains and declare victory with confidence,” the IAM section said.

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This is the fourth offer made by Boeing since the beginning of September, but the third on which members are invited to vote.

On September 12, members overwhelmingly rejected an offer of a 25 percent increase over four years. A second offer, which promised a 35 percent pay rise, was rejected by almost two-thirds of members last week.

The union has always demanded a 40 percent wage increase.

“We believe that asking members to remain on strike for longer would not be a good thing given that we have had so much success,” the union said.

“We encourage all of our employees to learn more about the enhanced offer and vote on Monday, November 4,” Boeing said, noting that the average machinist will earn $119,309 by the end of the contract if the offer is accepted , compared to $75,608 previously.

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Other terms of the contract remain unchanged, such as an annual bonus and the company’s commitment to build its next plane, expected in 2025, in the Seattle area, where Boeing was founded in July 1916.

The union is demanding the reestablishment of a pension plans abandoned in 2014 have not been honored.

Crucial vote

It remains to be seen whether union members will heed their leadership’s approval of the contract and return to work. A simple majority is required for ratification.

Ending the strike is necessary for Boeing, which is facing distinct financial difficulties on top of the work stoppage that has paralyzed the two factories that assemble the 737 MAX, 777 and other planes.

Only the factory responsible for the 787 Dreamliner in South Carolina is operational, but it only produces four planes per month.

Increased surveillance

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Boeing made a series of measures since mid-September to help alleviate its cash flow crisis.

In mid-October, it announced a 10 percent reduction in its global workforce, representing around 17,000 positions eliminated. This week, it launched a stock offering expected to raise about $21 billion.

Even before the strike, Boeing had slowed production at its commercial aircraft division to pay greater attention to safety protocols after a 737 MAX flown by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing in January when a fuselage panel exploded in mid-flight.

This near disaster – coming after two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed the lives of 346 people – has once again placed Boeing under intense regulatory scrutiny.

Boeing reported a huge quarterly loss of $6.2 billion last week.

Source: AFP