WOEING: Boeing reports $6 billion quarterly loss as striking workers vote whether to accept contract offer.
Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers were voting at union halls on a contract that would raise pay by 35% over four years. Before the doors opened at a hall near Boeing’s factory in Renton, Washington, workers joined a snaking line outside, where there were a few scattered calls for the offer’s rejection.
“It’s going to be a split vote,” predicted Brian Hatcher, who has worked at Boeing for 15 years and said he voted “no” largely because the proposal did not restore pensions that were eliminated a decade ago.
The strike, which started Sept. 13, Their strike since mid-September has served as an early test for Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, who became chief executive in August.
In his first remarks to investors, Ortberg said Boeing needs “a fundamental culture change,” and he laid out his plan to turn the company around after years of heavy losses and damage to the aerospace giant’s reputation.
It’s the self-inflicted wounds to Boeing’s reputation that could take the longest to heal.