In an exclusive interview, Jon Holden, president of IAM District 751, said he understood the angry reaction from members still fuming over a 2014 deal that raised health care costs and slashed pensions. He defended the sweeping agreement unveiled Sunday as the best his team could achieve in the final hectic days of negotiations, which also featured a brief appearance by Boeing’s new chief executive, Kelly Ortberg.

“We’ve done as much as we could in the collective bargaining process, short of a strike,” Holden said. “But rightly so, the members are angry. Now it’s in their hands how it should be.”

Investors welcomed the tentative deal, which sent Boeing shares up 3.4 percent in New York on Monday. But it is far from certain that the 33,000-member union will accept the offer. Maintaining industrial peace and avoiding a prolonged strike are critical to Boeing’s efforts to repair its battered balance sheet and improve the quality of work at its factories after years of turmoil.

The 25 percent wage increase offered by Boeing over four years is less than the 40 percent originally demanded by the union, but it is competitive compared to other recent collective bargaining agreements. The company is offering an immediate 11 percent wage increase, which would mean the highest-paid workers would earn $57.43 an hour. For some wage groups, minimum wages would increase by as much as 42.3 percent when cost of living is taken into account.

The United Auto Workers union ended a long strike last year after agreeing to a 25% hourly wage increase over a contract lasting more than four years. At Stellantis NV, the highest hourly wage will exceed $42 by 2028. At Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc., workers received a 23.5% pay increase over four years.

Boeing’s offer also eliminates a controversial bonus for IAM members that was tied to internal productivity, quality and safety measures. Workers are angry about the change, although they have at times been frustrated by the formula, which could be tainted by supplier errors.

Holden acknowledged that his team had focused on guaranteed wages because members had considered it a top priority at their meetings over the past two years. “I understand the frustration of not getting annual bonuses,” he added.

Strike preparations

Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers will vote on Thursday on whether to accept the deal and whether to strike. If Boeing’s offer is rejected and two-thirds of members support the stoppage, workers will walk out at 12:01 a.m. Friday.

“Because there hasn’t been any collective bargaining since 2008, expectations would be high,” says Leon Grunberg, a long-time observer of labor relations at Boeing and professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Puget Sound. “But Boeing is in such a vulnerable position right now that this is probably the most generous offer they can make.”

From Northern California to Idaho, strike preparations are underway. IAM members are putting up signs reading “burn barrels” to galvanize picket lines. In online forums, hundreds of workers have vented their anger, often in harsh language, over a contract they say does not do enough to improve their financial situation.

Leaflets distributed at Boeing’s Everett factory on Monday urged workers to reject “Boeing’s bad deal” and vote to strike in Thursday’s vote. The union was urged to fight for a 40 percent pay raise, a seat on the board and pensions.

“Stand firm,” said a fact sheet seen by Bloomberg. “We deserve a fair deal.”

Holden acknowledged that while the union accomplished much in negotiating the first comprehensive contract in 16 years, it did not get everything it asked for. But he said he ultimately decided to recommend that members accept Boeing’s offer because he could not guarantee that a strike would lead to a better deal.

“It’s irresponsible to ask people to go on strike when I’m not sure we can achieve that,” Holden said. “You have to consider the burden on 33,000 families.”

Ortberg’s role

Ortberg, who took over as Boeing CEO in early August, has promised to return focus to the plane maker’s manufacturing roots after a mid-air tire blowout on one of its jets earlier this year put a spotlight on the company’s production and safety record. The new chief had largely stayed out of contract negotiations that began in early March and intensified last month as the two sides holed up in a Seattle hotel.

But he stopped by a brief meeting on Saturday to address “job security,” a contentious issue as union leaders pressure Boeing to commit to building its next new plane in the Puget Sound region.

“He’s given us a promise of job security,” Holden said. “Then we have a lot of work to do to make it worthwhile.”

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