Boeing begins contract negotiations

WICHITA, Kan. -- Negotiators for Boeing Co. and its machinists union begin talks here today on a new master contract covering 26,100 workers at its major plants in Washington, Kansas and Oregon.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said its three key issues in the upcoming negotiations will be jobs and job security, a decent retirement plan and affordable health care.

Machinists spokesman Matt Bates said Boeing has done very well, and even though the terrorist attacks caused a drop in sales, analysts are predicting a rebound in sales by the end of 2003.

"There is really no good reason why these talks should be particularly difficult, although these are very important issues and challenging issues," he said.

Boeing spokesman Dick Ziegler declined to discuss the issues going into these negotiations, leaving those questions to company officials, who plan to meet with reporters Tuesday in a news conference before talks begin in Wichita.

Ziegler said the economy is giving company officials some real challenges.

"Negotiations at any time are going to be a challenge because each side walks in with a set of wants, needs and desires," he said. "Each set of negotiation is unique to the time period."

The current three-year contract expires Sept. 1. It covers 20,000 members in Washington, 5,000 in Kansas and 1,100 in Portland, Oregon. "We are going into the negotiations in a spirit of cooperation," Ziegler said. "We would hope at the outcome we will find for everyone that has a stake in it a measure of success."

Jobs affected

Thousands of jobs have been affected because Chicago-based Boeing subcontracts its work outside the company, transferring work to workers in countries such as Mexico, China, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia that have lower wages, union officials contend.

On July 9, union members will hold a strike authorization vote -- a procedural step that allows union leaders to hold a formal strike vote at contract expiration and obtain money from the union's strike fund.

IAM has represented Boeing workers since 1935.