787 production shift another bad Boeing decision, says IAM 751

The following is from Machinists District 751:

EVERETT (Oct. 1, 2020) – IAM District 751 President Jon Holden has issued the following response to Boeing’s announcement that it will consolidate 787 production in South Carolina:

IAM District 751 believes this is the wrong decision and just another in a string of bad decisions Boeing has made that fails to capitalize on the strengths of our workforce. Boeing leaders discount the efficiency, quality and productivity of our Puget Sound workforce. This company fails to take into account all the benefits Washington state offers in support of training programs, higher education, research and innovation, infrastructure, and continued tax incentives. Additionally, favoring a non-union site is only about control of the workforce, nothing more.

Boeing can’t stand the idea that those who design and build the aircraft, who are the heart and soul of the manufacturing process, have rights. Boeing doesn’t respect that our members have the ability to stand up, voice concerns and attempt course correction of poor management decisions to protect the integrity of the airplanes and the industry. This ability should be looked at as a positive; however, Boeing only sees it as conceding control rather than ensuring a quality product.

We will continue working to bring aerospace work to this region because our members and our communities have demonstrated why our state has the most efficient, productive aerospace manufacturing facilities in the world. This has been validated in the objective study completed by Richard Aboulafia entitled the 2019 Aerospace Competitive Economics Study (ACES) used to rank each state’s manufacturing capabilities using dozens of metrics that matter to companies making siting decisions. Washington State remains far and above the best place for aerospace design and manufacturing.

ALSO TODAY at The Stand — “We believe Boeing is making a mistake” — The Boeing Company’s decision to consolidate 787 production in North Charleston and abandon its Dreamliner line in Everett is disappointing and frustrating to the thousands of engineers, technical workers and pilots represented by the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA), IFPTE Local 2001.