Boeing factory workers have walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the plane maker’s Seattle commercial jet centre after members of its largest union rejected a contract offer and voted to strike.
Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which represents 33,000 Boeing employees on the US West Coast, voted overwhelmingly to strike on Thursday in Seattle, with 94.6 per cent voting to reject the offer and 96 per cent supporting a strike. They downed tools officially at midnight local time.
While both parties have expressed a desire to resume negotiations, the strike adds to the strain on Boeing. The company was reeling from the fallout over quality concerns that spurred investigations, a customer revolt and an executive shake-up.
“This has been a long time coming. Our members spoke loud and clear tonight,” Jon Holden, president of IAM District 751, told union members and journalists. “Clearly, there were aspects of this agreement that weren’t good enough.”
By the time he finished speaking, chants of “strike, strike” had become deafening.
Boeing builds 737 Max jetliners at its Renton factory, near Seattle, and makes 777 and 767 models at its Everett site, north of the city. Mr Holden said Boeing’s offer did not compensate for 16 years of stagnated wages, higher out-of-pocket healthcare costs and the relocation of thousands of union jobs.
“There's a lot at stake here for our members, so I am proud of them,” he added. “And we’re going to get back to the table as quickly as we can.”
Union members ignored a plea from new Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg, who has vowed to reset labour relations. Employees also bucked the recommendation of union leaders to accept terms that included a 25 per cent guaranteed wage increase over four years.
While that would is the largest pay increase to be offered by the plane maker, staff expected the rate to be far higher. They were also angered that the terms also eliminated an annual bonus.
Boeing has been in a financially challenging situation since a January 5 accident exposed deficiencies at its factories and forced it to reduce production. The company has been bleeding cash as a result, with its credit rating is hovering one step above speculative grade. It is also contending with a heavy debt load of $45 billion.
The rejection of the offer means Boeing and IAM District 751 will hold further talks in an effort to reach a deal that satisfies members of a union with a long history of activism. Cai von Rumohr, an analyst at TD Cowen, estimated that a 50-day strike, in line with previous action, could cut between $3 billion and $3.5 billion from Boeing’s cash flow.
Boeing employees will start to man picket lines outside about 30 company sites from California to Moses Lake, in eastern Washington state. Because the union said it was an unfair labour practices strike, a mediator will be assigned by the federal National Labour Relations Board, Mr Holden said.
The company said its offer was the best it could put forward, given the financial strain. Managers have been canvassing other staff this week to see whether they have the skills to replace striking IAM members temporarily.
Before the strike began, IAM members outside the Renton factory voiced their frustration over wages that have stagnate under a deal struck in 2014 that also eliminated pensions. They were also angered that Boeing kept a provision that forces hourly employees to be work for six years before reaching the maximum pay categories.
“I’m working stupid amounts of overtime just to get by,” said Zachary Haley, a 737 quality assurance inspector who has worked for Boeing for five years.
Boeing is at risk of losing its investment-grade credit rating as the embattled plane maker faces the prospect of a drawn-out strike.
The credit score on Boeing’s unsecured debt has stood at Baa3 with Moody’s Ratings since April. Moody’s said in a statement on Friday that it is reviewing the ratings for a possible downgrade and that it “will assess the strike’s duration and impact on cash flow and the potential equity capital raising Boeing may undertake to bolster its liquidity”.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The five pillars of Islam
UAE Falcons
Carly Lewis (captain), Emily Fensome, Kelly Loy, Isabel Affley, Jessica Cronin, Jemma Eley, Jenna Guy, Kate Lewis, Megan Polley, Charlie Preston, Becki Quigley and Sophie Siffre. Deb Jones and Lucia Sdao – coach and assistant coach.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
HOW TO WATCH
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The specs
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Gender equality in the workplace still 200 years away
It will take centuries to achieve gender parity in workplaces around the globe, according to a December report from the World Economic Forum.
The WEF study said there had been some improvements in wage equality in 2018 compared to 2017, when the global gender gap widened for the first time in a decade.
But it warned that these were offset by declining representation of women in politics, coupled with greater inequality in their access to health and education.
At current rates, the global gender gap across a range of areas will not close for another 108 years, while it is expected to take 202 years to close the workplace gap, WEF found.
The Geneva-based organisation's annual report tracked disparities between the sexes in 149 countries across four areas: education, health, economic opportunity and political empowerment.
After years of advances in education, health and political representation, women registered setbacks in all three areas this year, WEF said.
Only in the area of economic opportunity did the gender gap narrow somewhat, although there is not much to celebrate, with the global wage gap narrowing to nearly 51 per cent.
And the number of women in leadership roles has risen to 34 per cent globally, WEF said.
At the same time, the report showed there are now proportionately fewer women than men participating in the workforce, suggesting that automation is having a disproportionate impact on jobs traditionally performed by women.
And women are significantly under-represented in growing areas of employment that require science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills, WEF said.
* Agence France Presse
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
SERIES INFO
Cricket World Cup League Two
Nepal, Oman, United States tri-series
Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu
Fixtures
Wednesday February 5, Oman v Nepal
Thursday, February 6, Oman v United States
Saturday, February 8, United States v Nepal
Sunday, February 9, Oman v Nepal
Tuesday, February 11, Oman v United States
Wednesday, February 12, United States v Nepal
Table
The top three sides advance to the 2022 World Cup Qualifier.
The bottom four sides are relegated to the 2022 World Cup playoff
1 United States 8 6 2 0 0 12 0.412
2 Scotland 8 4 3 0 1 9 0.139
3 Namibia 7 4 3 0 0 8 0.008
4 Oman 6 4 2 0 0 8 -0.139
5 UAE 7 3 3 0 1 7 -0.004
6 Nepal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7 PNG 8 0 8 0 0 0 -0.458
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court
Starting at 2pm:
Elina Svitolina (UKR) [3] v Jennifer Brady (USA)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v Belinda Bencic (SUI [4]
Not before 7pm:
Sofia Kenin (USA) [5] v Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
Maria Sakkari (GRE) v Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) [7]
Court One
Starting at midday:
Karolina Muchova (CZE) v Katerina Siniakova (CZE)
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) v Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR)
Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) v Dayana Yastermska (UKR)
Petra Martic (CRO) [8] v Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) v Anett Kontaveit (EST)
More from Neighbourhood Watch
The six points:
1. Ministers should be in the field, instead of always at conferences
2. Foreign diplomacy must be left to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation
3. Emiratisation is a top priority that will have a renewed push behind it
4. The UAE's economy must continue to thrive and grow
5. Complaints from the public must be addressed, not avoided
6. Have hope for the future, what is yet to come is bigger and better than before
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
