Spirit, SPEEA resume labor contract talks

Published 4:11 pm Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems returned to the negotiating table Tuesday with its engineers union.

Members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace union in Wichita voted down Spirit’s previous two contract offers.

During the last go-round, 92 percent of voting SPEEA member gave the OK to union leaders to authorize a strike should the labor group and Spirit fail to reach a new contract.

SPEEA said its membership numbers have grown in Wichita as the union hashes out an agreement with Spirit.

SPEEA members in Canada, Scotland, and Tulsa, Okla., handed out flyers at Spirit-associated companies.

A federal mediator is taking part in the contract talks during which SPEEA presented a counter offer to Spirit’s last contract offer.

Spirit is expected to make another offer tomorrow morning.