Boeing Offers 35 Pct Pay Hike To Striking Workers

SAN JOSE (California), Oct 20 (Bernama-dpa) -- United States’ (US) aerospace giant Boeing has made an offer to tens of thousands of striking factory workers, including pay raises of 35 per cent over the course of four years, the IAM trade union said on Saturday.

The trade union's 33,000 members at Boeing will be asked to vote on the proposal on Wednesday. The offer comes a month into a strike at Boeing, the German news agency (dpa) reported.

The new offer was negotiated with the support of US Labour Secretary Julie Su, according to the trade union.

The proposal also provides for a one-off payment of US$7,000 as well as improvements to retirement and sickness leave benefits. Boeing has also agreed to reverse course on an earlier plan to get rid of annual bonuses for workers.

The strike, which began on September 13 around Boeing's headquarters in the north-western US, paralysed production of Boeing's best-selling 737 jet and the 777 long-haul aircraft. 

The company, which has been beset by numerous issues with its aircraft, and is facing major financial problems, is coming under even greater pressure as a result of the labour dispute.

The crisis at Boeing dates back to a pair of fatal crashes of the company's 737 MAX aircraft in 2018 and 2019 that killed a total of 346 people. 

The popular aircraft were grounded for more than a year, and subsequent investigations revealed issues at the company. 

An incident in January where a door of a Boeing 737 MAX-9 aircraft blew off mid-flight led to further scrutiny of the company, and several subsequent issues have deepened the problems facing Boeing.

Boeing recently offered the striking workers an income increase of 30 per cent over four years, but withdrew the offer after the union refused.

At the time, IAM criticised the fact that Boeing made the offer directly to workers instead of negotiating with trade union representatives first.

-- BERNAMA-dpa