ST. CHARLES, Missouri: Roughly 2,500 Boeing workers are expected to go on strike next month at three plants in the St. Louis area after they voted Sunday to reject a contract offer from the plane maker.
The strike is planned to begin Aug. 1 at Boeing manufacturing facilities in St. Charles County, St. Louis County and Mascoutah, Illinois, after the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 union voted down the contract, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
“We cannot accept a contract that is not fair and equitable, as this company continues to make billions of dollars each year off the backs of our hardworking members,” the union said.
Boing said in a statement that the Arlington, Virginia-based company is disappointed in the vote, but it will now use its “contingency plan to support continuity of operations in the event of a strike.”
A Boeing spokesman said the company’s contract offer included competitive raises and a generous retirement plan that included Boeing matching employee contributions to their retirement plan up to 10 percent of their pay.
Boeing is expected to give an update on its finances this week when it releases its next quarterly earnings report on Wednesday. Earlier this year, Boeing reported a $1.2 billion loss in the first quarter, but just last week the company announced that Delta Air Lines had ordered 100 of its 737 airplanes.
About 2,500 Boeing workers reject deal, vote to go on strike
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About 2,500 Boeing workers reject deal, vote to go on strike
- Boeing saus the ompany’s contract offer included competitive raises and a generous retirement plan
Free trade negotiations between GCC, India mark new phase of partnership, says sec-gen
RIYADH: The Gulf Cooperation Council’s secretary-general affirmed that the negotiations for a free trade agreement between the GCC and India, and the signing of the joint statement, represents a new phase of strategic partnership.
Jasem Mohamed Al-Budaiwi said that this contributes to enhancing close cooperation and strengthening economic and trade ties, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
This came during the signing ceremony of the joint statement on launching the free trade agreement negotiations between the Al-Budaiwi and India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, which took place in New Delhi, on Tuesday.
During the signing ceremony, Al-Budaiwi said that the Terms of Reference, signed on Feb. 5, provide a comprehensive and clear framework for these negotiations. The two nations agreed to discuss enhancing cooperation in vital strategic areas, including trade in goods, customs procedures, and services.
Additionally, the framework covers Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures, intellectual property rights, cooperation on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, along with other topics of mutual interest. This reflects the comprehensive nature of the agreement and its ability to keep pace with the future economy.
Al-Budaiwi expressed hope that these negotiations would lead to a comprehensive and ambitious free trade agreement that works to remove customs and non-customs barriers, enhance the flow of quality investments in both directions, and achieve further liberalization in trade and investment cooperation between the GCC and India for mutual benefit.
This would provide a stimulating economic environment and an investment climate that opens broad horizons for the business sector, supports supply chains, and accelerates the pace of economic growth in line with the ambitious developmental visions of the GCC states.
The top official affirmed the full readiness of the General Secretariat to host the first round of negotiations at its headquarters in Riyadh during the second half of this year.
The two sides held a meeting during which they reviewed the existing cooperation relations between the GCC and India and discussed ways to develop and elevate them to broader horizons, serving mutual interests and enhancing opportunities for strategic partnership between the two sides, particularly in the economic, investment, and trade fields.
They praised the role undertaken by the negotiating teams from both sides, appreciating the efforts contributing to reaching a comprehensive agreement that enhances economic integration and supports the smooth flow of trade between the two nations.
