SEATTLE, Washington — Negotiators from Boeing and the union representing engineers and technical workers in Washington and other states will resume contract talks on Sept. 8, the union announced on Monday.
Talks ended after members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA) overwhelmingly rejected Boeing’s four-year contract offer on Aug. 21.The two sides met on Monday to discuss resuming negotiations.SPEEA members said in an internal survey that their top priority is getting higher general wage increases from Boeing in the next offer.“We look forward to taking in SPEEA’s feedback and reaching a resolution that works for our employees and keeps our company and team competitive for years to come,” a Boeing spokesman said.Boeing engineers and technical workers overwhelmingly rejected the US planemaker’s four-year contract offer two weeks ago.The 17,000 members of SPEEA also voted overwhelmingly to give the negotiating team the power to declare a strike when the contract expires on Oct. 6.A work stoppage by SPEEA members would further delay Boeing’s certification campaigns for its 737 Max 10 and 777-9 planes, both of which are several years behind schedule.Boeing responded by posting contractor positions for engineering and technical roles on job sites, to which the SPEEA said could set back progress.
