Boeing’s 33,000 Machinists union members went back at work Tuesday, restarting production at the company’s largest commercial airplane factories after an eight-week strike left the plants sitting idle. The strike strained finances for Boeing, its workforce, aerospace suppliers and businesses surrounding the quieted factories, but it ended before the financial toll became devastating, according to analysts and local economists. Machinists lost paychecks and health insurance benefits but are returning to work with a guaranteed wage hike and an extra one-time ratification bonus.
Boeing risked a credit rating downgrade and further production delays, but analysts appear optimistic the company can successfully move forward if it ramps up production efficiently. Aerospace suppliers on hold while Boeing’s Renton and Everett, Washington, factories sat idle may face the worst damage, as their workers return without the perks of a new contract. The strike, which began Sept.
13, ended last week when 59% of ballots cast supported the new contract. Machinists secured a 38% general wage increase over the next four years and a $12,000 ratification bonus. At 53 days, the strike was slightly shorter than the last work stoppage at Boeing, which lasted 57 days in 2008.
Workers lost an average of $10,400 in wages after 50 days on strike, according to an analysis from the investment banking company Jefferies. But, some workers could see a $9,900 gain in the first year of the contract. And, w.