Boeing Workers in Oregon Plan Visit by Union President

“Strike!  Strike! Strike!”  Boeing workers chanted.

About 33,000 workers are on strike after rejecting a contract offer.

“We’re going to be doing as long as it takes to get a fair contract.”

“I absolutely love working for Boeing. I mean, it’s a phenomenal company. We just need to make some adjustments.”

The striking workers include 1300 at the Boeing plant in Gresham.

The worker’s demands include a 43% raise over three years instead of the 25% raise over four years that Boeing offered. They also want the company to bring back a pension plan and improve health benefits. But Boeing argues it’s facing hard times and plans to freeze hiring and consider temporary layoffs during the strike.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union represents the Boeing employees. Thursday, the union’s president, Brian Bryant, plans to visit rallies at the Boeing Portland facility on Sandy Boulevard and the Boeing PDX paint hangar on Cornfoot Road.