Seattle mayor joins Boeing workers at rally

SEATAC, Wash. – About 2,000 members of Boeing’s biggest union rallied Sunday to tell the company to “do the right thing” before the machinists’ contract expires Sept. 2.

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and King County Executive Ron Sims showed their support by walking with the union from the DoubleTree Hotel to Angel Lake Park and speaking at the rally.

The Machinists union, which represents about 18,400 production workers in the Seattle area, Wichita and Portland, has said its top concerns are pensions, health care and job security.

“I don’t care what other people in the industry are making – we set the bar,” union president Mark Blondin said during the rally.

Union members at the rally said they expect the company to agree to a better deal than during 2002 contract talks, because both the economy and airplane sales have picked up since then.

Negotiations opened in June. A two-week round of final talks began Monday, when Boeing and union leaders checked into the DoubleTree Hotel for talks beginning early every morning and dragging late into the night.

Neither side has gone into detail about exactly what has been discussed. In a statement posted to its contract talks Web site, Boeing hinted that job security has been a sticking point.

Company spokesman Charles Bickers said Sunday that negotiations are right on schedule and discussions have been productive.

“We’re focused on reaching a contract with the union that’s going to help us be competitive and win new business. Winning new business is the way that we create and sustain jobs going forward,” Bickers said.