EVERETT — Boeing Co. Machinists in the Puget Sound region will have a little extra jingle in their pockets this week — just in time for the holidays.
About 25,000 Machinists in the region will receive $1,500 each as a lump-sum payment from Boeing as dictated by the union and company’s labor agreement. That’s a payout of $37 million by Boeing.
Machinists who were on Boeing’s payroll as of Sept. 4 are eligible for the payment, although some other stipulations apply, said Boeing spokesman Tim Healy.
Not all union members will actually bring home the extra money. Machinists had the option of rolling the $1,500 payment into their investment plans at Boeing. That’s a new option for union members this year, said Connie Kelliher, Machinists spokeswoman.
The Machinists and Boeing signed a new four-year labor contract last November, after a 57-day strike by the union. Under the contract, Boeing agreed to make three lump-sum payments to the Machinists over four years.
Last fall, Machinists received a payment equivalent to 10 percent of their gross annual earnings or $5,000 — whichever was greater. However, after nearly two months on strike, the payment merely made up for some of the Machinists’ lost wages.
Next year, Boeing will again make $1,500 payments to its Machinists here in the Puget Sound region.
Leaders for Boeing and the Machinists union ended talks in October to extend their contract. The two sides discussed a longer contract as Boeing considered where to put its second 787 production line. The company announced in late October that it would put the line in Charleston, S.C., not Everett. Workers at Boeing’s recently acquired Charleston plant had ousted the Machinists union in September.
Although the Machinists receive lump-sum payments negotiated in their contract, they are not included in Boeing’s employee incentive plan. Roughly 114,000 of Boeing’s 157,000 workers are eligible for the incentive program, which pays out based on whether the company meets or exceeds certain goals.
The Machinists, and other Boeing workers alike, participate in Boeing’s ShareValue Trust program, which links the company’s stock price to payments in shares to employees. In 2008, Boeing workers received roughly $1,800 in shares from the program.
The ShareValue Trust program will be evaluated again June 30, 2010. Boeing’s stock price would need to be $87 for workers to receive a payout. On Friday, Boeing shares closed under $51.
Michelle Dunlop: 425-339-3454, mdunlop@heraldnet.com.
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