Boeing union sets October 26 vote on contract offer for 3,200 striking workers

(Reuters) -A union representing over 3,200 striking workers at Boeing said on Thursday that its members will vote on October 26 on an existing contract offer from the company with minor modifications. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers represents members who assemble fighter jets and munitions at Boeing's plants in the St. Louis area. The union, in a memo to its members said, the offer came without a recommendation from its bargaining committee. Boeing made modifications to its existing contract that give strikers more time before returning to work and remove the provision allowing non-union workers to perform union tasks for up to 30 days after the strike ends. Boeing's defense workers have now been on a strike for about 80 days. The union has been pressing the planemaker for a contract similar to the one it had reached with its Seattle-area workers last year, which included higher retirement plan contributions. The workers struck work on August 4, after rejecting a second offer from Boeing. They also rejected another proposal that included a 24% general wage increase over five years and a $4,000 ratification bonus. The members, however, voted 90% in favor of a four-year contract proposal floated by the union that Boeing refused to consider. (Reporting by Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona and Maju Samuel)

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