Boeing bosses are staring down the barrel.
The twists and turns of the past week paint a picture of managers badly wrong-footed by the depth of fury among workers who tossed out a 25% pay rise deal and launched strike action.
“They probably didn’t think that we had enough people for the strike,” Kushal Varma, a Boeing mechanic, told Reuters. “But this is a movement of people who are willing to put their livelihoods on the line to get what’s fair.”
“Oh no, the consequences of our own actions!”
Awww. Those poor bosses. They might have to make some hard choices; kind of like the people they employ who may have to choose between food or rent.
I realize airline mechanics make half decent money, but still. No sympathy (Edit: for Boeing, if that wasn’t completely clear).
Now, a proverb a Russian I met early in my career told me: every man is the architect of their own hemhroids I swear the guy was the next Pushkin
I realize airline mechanics make half decent money, but still. No sympathy.
Gross and stupid take on this.
When all powerful bosses who think they control everything and everyone realize who has the most power.
Good for the workers … now watch government lackies step in to support big business.
Whatever happens it should show the country that solidarity matters … hopefully it spreads everywhere else.
If the government steps in, I expect them to make the point to bosses - “fix this. We aren’t undermining labor and your company is of national import. Unfuck your shit, it’s not our problem and it isn’t theirs. Figure it out.”
That’s now how Biden works, at least in regards to the train strike. He prefers to hope he can convince the capitalists when there is no pressure and in secret. Somehow it seemed to actually work, though I’m pretty sure the workers didn’t get a lot of what they wanted.
Somehow it seemed to actually work
Tell that to East Palestine. Train derailments are on the rise because of lax safety measures, and this was one of the issues that the workers were trying to resolve. Instead Biden had congress force them back to work.
Just like when biden sided with the rail workers right??? Ooo wait… he told them to get back to work or get arrested…
Biden got the rail workers what they asked for, this isn’t quite right.
https://ibew.org/media-center/Articles/23Daily/2306/230620_IBEWandPaid
“We’re thankful that the Biden administration played the long game on sick days and stuck with us for months after Congress imposed our updated national agreement,” Russo said. “Without making a big show of it, Joe Biden and members of his administration in the Transportation and Labor departments have been working continuously to get guaranteed paid sick days for all railroad workers.”
I’m trying to imagine how T**** would try to handle this. First, extort Boeing execs in exchange for help. Then, once the “donations” clear, use all powers and pressures to crush the strike, firing so-called strike leaders (illegal? add it to the pile…), and dump in more police/military for intimidation.
Bernie and progressives will undoubtedly fully support workers, join the line. Biden can strengthen his “most pro-union president” legacy (it’s a low bar, not perfect). Great opportunity for Harris and Walz (but it needs to be very strong or it will only disappoint).
bothsides.jxl
Boeing execs said they held nothing back. The union members took that to be threatening. I genuinely wonder how much profit was actually reserved and how much executive comp is still available to drop into the pool. To me, “holding nothing back” means the company genuinely cannot to fund anything else without going into the red. Holding nothing back means fat was cut, executive pay was reduced, and shareholders understand their dividends are gone because the people that make them money need to get some too. Holding nothing back means some rainy day assets are sold and corporate, non-union members experience some austerity (granted you have to remain competitive so as to not lose your value creators so you can’t cut everything or they’d leave; executives are almost never value creators so they can have austerity measures). Holding nothing back means jobs could be cut if more hardship appears.
Something tells me Boeing was holding stuff back with that offer. It could be all the deferred stock executives have or the lack of shareholder expectation management. Not sure! We’ll never know.
On the one hand, I am glad this is finally happening.
On the other hand, I am 99% certain my father, who’s worked at variously the Everett and Renton plants his entire adult life, is continuing to be a scab, as he has also done his entire adult life.
Raised me on Rush Limbaugh, last I talked to him he was a Q Anon nut that believed Antifa did Jan 6th and Tom Hanks’ son rapes and kills children for their adrenochrome.
The 1% uncertainty is not from a 1% chance he might actually also be striking, its the 1% chance he’s either retired or died from a heart attack since I last spoke to him.
Either way, fuck Boeing.
