Outside observers — like the governor, members of newspaper editorial boards and small aerospace business owners — have watched in disbelief as Machinists union leaders first negotiated a new deal with Boeing to keep building planes here for another generation, then told the rank-and-file the deal was “crap” and had their members vote the deal down, then re-engaged at the bargaining table before walking away and refusing to let their members vote on an improved deal from Boeing.
Of course, all that hangs in the balance are thousands of jobs and literally billions in state and local tax revenues stretching out 20 years or more.
To try to understand the thinking of the state’s labor bosses, it’s instructive to read what they write to other union members. The scary part is they must actually believe this stuff, to walk away from guaranteed manufacturing jobs that are the envy of workers – union and non-union – across the country.
Just consider the perspective of Jeff Johnson, the President of the State Labor Council: “The machinists stood up bravely and proudly for the middle class” by voting against the first proposal, even though it would have guaranteed an upper-middle class existence for their members for the next 20 years.
Of course, if even Democrat elected officials suggest a vote should be held Johnson put them in their place:
“While Governor Jay Inslee and Congressman Rick Larson are certainly entitled to their opinions about Boeing’s proposal, putting their opinions in a press statement is absolutely disrespectful to the Machinists and to the labor movement.”
This was even too much for liberal Seattle Times editorialist Lance Dickie, who wrote
“Yes, they had the audacity to be concerned about the long-term economic welfare of thousands of Boeing employees. The nerve!”
And if the Boeing Company decides to build its next plane elsewhere because of the belligerent Machinists, well according to Johnson, it’s not their fault:
“Should the Boeing Corporation choose to locate production of the 777x any place other than Washington State, the responsibility and the ultimately the blame for that decision can only be placed with the company’s desire to break the community standards”
Yes, Johnson believes it is breaking community standards to offer a generous 401k pension plan, guaranteed raises, cost-of-living increases, a $15,000 bonus for signing the contract and healthcare benefits that even Obamacare can’t mess up.
We can only hope as residents of a state that has benefitted greatly from the Boeing Company’s presence here that its leaders do not decide that they can’t risk the constant threat of work stoppages amid cries of disrespect from its well-paid machinists. However, Dickie didn’t give Times readers too much hope,
The muddle has been on the union side, with Puget Sound members hearing different tunes and tones from their representatives locally and at the national level. Johnson’s bleat about a show of disrespect is a classic demonstration of having nothing else to say, and a feeble attempt to change the subject, and say “don’t blame us.”
Wonder if it’s too late to have the machinists walk away from the union and us to become a “Right to Work” state. I never did like being forced into a union in order to work. The big guys never seem to suffer, but don’t mind if the rest of us go without as long as they get theirs. How does “Give me the ‘Right to
Work’ and get rid of the union thugs running our state” sound?
Wonder if it’s too late to have the machinists walk away from the union and us to become a “Right to Work” state. I never did like being forced into a union in order to work. The big guys never seem to suffer, but don’t mind if the rest of us go without as long as they get theirs. How does “Give me the ‘Right to
Work’ and get rid of the union thugs running our state” sound?