Boeing Plans Layoffs Amid Machinists’ Strike
King County Closes Burien Encampment, Works with Regional Homelessness Authority to Find Shelter for 55 Residents
Mutual Aid Groups Collect Cold Weather Gear for Unhoused Neighbors
One month after the more than 33,000 Boeing workers of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) voted to strike on Sept. 14, Boeing has announced plans to lay off 10% of its workforce. About 17,000 workers would be affected in the months to come; about 66,000 of the company’s workers reside in Washington State.
On Friday, Oct. 11, new Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg wrote a letter to Boeing employees, citing that the company must “reset our workforce levels to align with our financial reality.” His letter seemed to hint that the current strike and the company’s recent problems with manufacturing have both been the impetus for the decisions.
“We need to be clear-eyed about the work we face and realistic about the time it will take to achieve key milestones on the path to recovery,” Ortberg wrote. “We also need to focus our resources on performing and innovating in the areas that are core to who we are, rather than spreading ourselves across too many efforts that can often result in underperformance and underinvestment.”
Boeing has stated that they expected to lose over $1.3 billion this year by just the third quarter. In addition to worker layoffs, Boeing will also delay or halt manufacturing of a number of planes made in its Everett facility. The buildout of a new 777X plane will be pushed back to 2026, in part due to certification delays and recent discoveries of a defective part. Boeing’s 767 freighters will also cease production in 2027 after the company completes its current orders for 29 new jets.
No offer is currently on the table after numerous previous attempts have failed. Both IAM and Boeing have recently accused one another of failing to bargain in good faith or refusing to make changes around their terms for retirement and wages.
Last Tuesday, on Oct. 8, IAM filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), alleging that the company’s Sept. 23 contract proposal — which Boeing said was their “best and final” offer — was released directly to the media and union members without collective bargaining. IAM saw the move as Boeing’s attempt to force a vote.
In response, Boeing released a statement that said, “Unfortunately, the union did not seriously consider these proposals and continues to insist on unreasonable demands.”
Boeing then filed a charge of unfair labor practice with the NLRB on Thursday, Oct.10, which accused the IAM of “regressive bargaining,” “surface bargaining,” and a failure to “bring representatives to the bargaining table with the authority to reach an agreement.” Boeing also claimed that IAM has misrepresented contract terms and the status of negotiations to both union members and the public.
The charge came two days after Boeing withdrew its most recent contract offer — which included newly increased worker wages from 25% to 30% over four years, as well as some 401(k) contributions and an annual bonus. The offer was never voted on by the union. IAM had stated that union members would have rejected the offer, according to an internal survey, and that Boeing was “hell-bent” on rigidly adhering to their existing proposal.
One major point of contention between IAM and Boeing lies in worker pensions, which Boeing got rid of 10 years ago. Boeing told KING 5 News that there was no way they could reenact pensions. They stated, “There is no scenario where the company reactivates a defined-benefit pension for this or any other population. They’re prohibitively expensive and that’s why virtually all private employers have transitioned away from them to defined-contribution plans.”
Striking union workers held a rally on the afternoon of Tuesday, Oct. 15, at the union’s hall in Renton. Democratic Sens. Maria Cantwell and Rep. Pramila Jayapal were present to offer their support to the workers and to urge Boeing to return to the bargaining table.
“In the last decade of this contract, the cost of living has gone up 30% but your wages only went up 15%. You are the face of this company, you are the face of the opportunity to grow the middle class in America,” Cantwell said.
IAM first began their strike on Sept. 14, in response to what they considered an inadequate four-year contract proposal from Boeing. The strike is the first to take place at Boeing in 16 years.
Strike updates can be found on the websites of IAM District 751 and IAM District W24, which are the two unions striking as a part of IAM, one of North America’s largest industrial trade unions, with about 600,000 active and retired members that span industries such as transportation, defense, health care, and more.
King County has worked with the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) to find shelter and housing for 55 individuals who were previously located at an encampment in Burien near the district courthouse on county-owned land. The encampment is now closed for cleanup and remediation.
According to a press release from King County, workers had conducted daily outreach at the site since July in order to determine the names of the 55 individuals living there permanently and offer them assistance with documentation, medical needs, or additional services. Over the course of several weeks, as shelters became available, KCRHA began to move residents off the site. They noted that Oct. 15 would be the last day for residents to remain at the site.
“We were able to do a service match based on their individual needs,” Arlene Hampton, a director at KCRHA and the project manager overseeing the encampment, told FOX 13 Seattle.
KCRHA had worked with local nonprofits and community organizations to find the placements. Hampton also stated that some of the 55 residents of the encampment were reunited with family, entered detox programs, or found permanent housing.
As winter approaches, Cold World — a local mutual aid network — is once again banding together to accept donations of new or lightly used cold-weather gear, including coats, blankets, socks, tents, sleeping bags, tarps, hats, gloves, thermal layers, neck warmers, hand and toe warmers, and boots.
Donations will be accepted via donation bins from now through Jan. 31, 2025. Drop-off locations can be found throughout Seattle, in collaboration with nine local businesses. They are:
Hellbent Brewing Company (Lake City)
13035 Lake City Way NE
Flying Bike Cooperative (Greenwood)
8570 Greenwood Ave. N
Fuel Coffee (Wallingford)
1705 N 45th St.
Fuel Coffee (Montlake)
2300 24th Ave. E
Fuel Coffee (Capitol Hill)
610 19th Ave. E
Rain City Fit (Capitol Hill / First Hill)
1516 11th Ave.
Left Bank Books Collective (Downtown)
92 Pike St. #B
Foxycut Salon (Atlantic)
808 Rainier Ave. S
Bebop Waffle Shop / Flower Lab (West Seattle)
2600 California Ave. SW
Cold World was formed in the winter of 2018. This year, the network is a collaboration between: A Will and a Way, Eggrolls Mutual Aid, Subvert UD, West Seattle Mutual Aid Party, SKC & Eastside Mutual Aid, A Single Spark Mutual Aid, Greenwood Mutual Aid, Aurora Grill at Bitter Lake Reservoir Park, and Free Food Wednesday, which takes place at Cal Anderson Park every Wednesday at 7 p.m.
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