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Wichita Engineering Unit
SPEEA members approve six-year contract with Spirit AeroSystems

Nearly 1,000 engineers represented by SPEEA, IFPTE Local 2001, at Spirit AeroSystems approved a new six-year contract by a significant margin.

Validated and counted at the SPEEA Wichita office Tuesday (Oct. 16), the final tally showed 400 to accept and 173 to reject. There were 573 valid ballots.

The new contract provides annual raises, increased overtime pays and a $4,000 signing bonus. Employees also agreed to changes to the medical plans that phase-in during the contract.

Accept	Reject
400	173

“We were able to secure a number of improvements needed and sought by members,” said SPEEA Midwest Director B.J. Moore. “Like all negotiations, both sides needed to, and did make some compromises.”

Formal negotiations started in May and continued through the summer and fall. A complete offer received tentative agreement from

Midwest members help union Tellers with the ballot count at the SPEEA Wichita office, Tuesday, Oct. 16. From left are Dave Driver, Joe Abbott, Rick Nelson and Midwest Teller R.G. Reser.

the SPEEA Negotiation Team on Sept. 24. The union held a number of lunchtime and afterwork meetings to present the offer and answer members’ questions. Ballots were mailed to the homes of members on Sept. 28.

The SPEEA Negotiation Team and the Bargaining Unit Council (local council representatives) recommended members approve the contract offer. The union’s position was strengthened by steadily increasing membership during negotiations, reaching a record 73% by the time ballots were mailed to members.

The new six-year contract takes effect Dec. 2 and continues through Dec. 1, 2024.

Read the Contract Highlights

SPEEA WEU Negotiation Team
R Matthew Joyce (Chair)
Elisa Acosta (Vice Chair)
John Poettker (Secretary)
Keith Covert
Eric Stewart

Spirit AeroSystems
Temporary overtime increase for non-exempt WTPU

WICHITA - SPEEA recently worked with Spirit AeroSystems to extend an overtime incentive to non-exempt represented employees. The incentive is two times the base rate of pay (instead of time and a half) for any hours in excess of 40 hours per week.

Spirit initially offered the OT incentive to the machinists due to backlog. SPEEA Midwest Director BJ Moore initiated conversations with Spirit leadership to include the WTPU non-exempt.

More than 700 are eligible in the Wichita Technical and Professional Unit (WTPU) for the double time for overtime through Tuesday, Oct. 30. The OT rate increase started Sept. 1.

Moore noted SPEEA is in discussion with Spirit regarding exempt SPEEA-represented employees. This includes the Wichita Engineering Unit (WEU) and some in the WTPU who are exempt because of their job code and/or skill level.

No impact on SPEEA
Janus decision hits federal, state, city unions

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate mandatory union fees for government employees effectively makes all government jobs a “right-to-work” job – meaning employees must voluntarily decide to join the union and pay their fair share.

While potentially devastating to government unions, this decision has NO impact on any SPEEA member. The Boeing Company, Spirit AeroSystems and Triumph Composite Systems are private employers and are not covered by this Supreme Court decision.

It does, however, impact many of our fellow local unions in the IFPTE that represent employees in the public sector.

“We stand with our fellow IFPTE Locals in our firm belief that this ruling is wrong,” said Joel Funfar, SPEEA president. “It is an attack on workers and labor unions.”

The decision also has no effect on the requirement that all government employees in a bargaining unit receive the same representation, regardless if they are full, dues-paying members or pay nothing to the union.

Supreme Court deals big setback to labor unions
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that government workers can't be forced to contribute to labor unions. AP Article

Eligibility extended two years
Trade Act Assistance available for laid-off Boeing workers

Workers laid-off by The Boeing Company in Washington state through August 9, 2019, are eligible to apply for training, income support, and other benefits through the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance program (TAA or "Trade Act").

The eligibility dates were recently extended an additional two years as a result of a petition to the U.S. Labor Department by the International Association of Machinists (IAM), District 751 in partnership with SPEEA, IFPTE Local 2001.

Laid-off workers will receive a letter detailing the benefits steps to apply for assistance.

Since Washington state extended the aerospace tax preferences (tax breaks) in November, 2013 to Boeing and the aerospace industry with the agreed intent to “maintain and grow Washington’s aerospace workforce” more than 3,500 SPEEA-represented employees have been laid off by the company. The most recent figures from July show that overall Boeing has shed 15,828 jobs from its Washington state workforce since the tax breaks were extended.

Additional information to help members facing layoff is available on the following SPEEA web pages:

Trade Act Benefits Overview

Layoff information

Jobs for aerospace workers

Ed Wells Partnership - Contract benefit
Resume and job-search workshops available

Ed Wells Partnership (EWP) recently added a number of resume and job-search workshops to its list of offerings. The workshops provide information about how to be successful searching for new jobs within Boeing.

Complete information and registration is available on the Boeing intranet http://edwells.web.boeing.com/TransitionResources/.