November 2009 751 AERO MECHANIC Page VOL. 64 NO. 10 NOVEMBER 2009 Health Care Open Bad Move Makes 787 Even Riskier Enrollment for The Boeing Co.’s decision to put more manufacturing capacity into South Caro- Members at Boeing lina is just the latest in a long string of bad decisions for the 787, which has already Employees at Boeing represented by resulted in an over 2-year delay, District IAM 751 will be asked to select their 751 President Tom Wroblewski said. health and dental insurance coverage for But Boeing’s plan to establish a second 2010 during the annual enrollment pe- “surge” line in Everett while also expand- riod, which runs November 10 through ing its Charleston operation also gives the Photo courtesy of Boeing media December 3. Machinists Union a unique opportunity. Boeing's announcement to put another 787 line in South Carolina is just the Any changes “This is our chance to prove to the latest in a string of bad decisions for that plane. Hedging their bet, Boeing employees world what we know to be true,” the will put a temporary second line in Everett in the capable hands of our make during Union leader said. “While Boeing is con- members - the ones who will ensure the 787 flies and gets FAA certified. open enroll- structing buildings in Charleston, we Charleston was the only option. spin these second line talks, we’d be deliv- ment will go can be building airplanes the right way.” “It seemed all along that Boeing ering Dreamliners today, instead of trying into effect on Wroblewski said most of what Boeing wasn’t really interested in making a deal to figure out how to fix all the problems January 1, has told the news media – and its own with us,” he said. “Now that our elected that their outsourcing has caused.” 2010. You will employees – about the talks between officials – like Patty Murray – are speak- Machinists Union leaders tried hard receive more Union representatives and the Company ing out, we know that to be true. Boeing’s to craft a proposal that would have been information in was misleading and “untruthful.” so-called ‘desire’ for a 10-year contract acceptable to members, Wroblewski said. the mail from Boeing never responded to Union was merely a ploy to help the Company Members would have voted on any Boeing and can proposals about a contract extension that extort more money out of South changes to the current four-year con- make benefit would have guaranteed no strikes through Carolina’s taxpayers.” tract, before it could take effect. plan changes through your TotalAccess 2020, never presented a proposal of its The plan nearly backfired when Ma- “We were willing to deal with them to account. own, and never once let on there was a chinists Union leadership agreed to work extend our contract. But if we were go- Keep in mind this open enrollment is to deadline for striking a deal, he said. with the Company, instead of fighting ing to guarantee stability for them, we complete our transition to a calendar year News reports last week explained them. At that point, management simply had to get guarantees in return – more plan beginning January 1, 2010. If you why: Boeing executives had committed walked away, Wroblewski said. jobs, and commitments on health care,” don’t take action during the open enroll- to their South Carolina strategy as far “Boeing’s executives had to work very he said. “But they weren’t willing to com- ment period, your current benefit choices back as last February, and had decided to hard to make sure they didn’t get a deal mit to anything – even the second line.” will continue automatically and the new use the Machinists Union as a scapegoat with us,” Wroblewski said. “You got to After the fact, Boeing tried to convince monthly contributions will apply. to try to convince Wall Street and the give them credit – if they’d managed the the news media that the Union had made IAM members at Boeing in Puget public that the risky, costly venture in 787 program as well as they managed to Continued on page 3 Continued on page 6 Terry Frei is one of Members ‘Grind’ Solution for 787 three Boeing Co. managers have discovered they can save They’ve even handled rush work for the new Boeing members money – and more importantly, time – by sending facilities in South Carolina. Workers there don’t have at the important work to a highly skilled team of experts: the machines or skills to do what the Everett shop does, Spokesman District 751 members who work in the Everett Grind Kuchinski said, so the Everett shop does it for them, and Review Shop. sends the work south by overnight express. who keeps “Most of the guys in here are 20-year-plus guys,” “We support everybody,” said Kuchinski, who works all equip- ment and said member Dave Kuchinksi. “We’ve been doing it a first shift with fellow members Rob Bruns and Jeff presses long time. We run everything.” Nevills. “Dash 8, a lot of that’s been emergent. South running The Everett shop supports programs all across Boeing Carolina, when they call, they pretty much need it next 24/7. Commercial Airplanes, helping to fabricate tooling day.” components and parts used to build 737s, 747-8s and One of the most-important recent jobs has gotten the 777s, and to supply Aircraft-On-Ground teams sent out shop directly involved with the 787 program. Members Keep Presses by Boeing. Members on the Everett assembly line are working to Member install the “side-of-body fix” that will allow the first Rolling in Spokane Dave 787s to fly – essentially installing stiffeners fabricated Kuchinski by their District 751 brothers and sisters in Auburn. The The Spokesman-Review is the most comprehensive (l) shows stiffeners are intended to strengthen the wing-to-body news source for Spokane and the surrounding areas in Business join on the plane. Eastern Washington, but there is far more to keeping a Rep While they’re installing the fix to the early planes, newspaper printing daily than simply writing stories. Richard the assembly line workers also need to use temporary Beyond just the daily newspaper, there are many other Jackson (r) fasteners to hold components in place so other work can jobs run on these presses, including other publications, some of the be done. ads, brochures, etc – which demand the equipment machines The result is an immediate requirement for hundreds remain in top running condition. the Everett of temporary fasteners. But to send out an order for them Three IAM members are charged with maintaining Grind Shop the presses, imaging equipment, prepress equipment, uses to through normal vendor channels would take weeks or packaging machines – basically any equipment with fabricate even months, Kuchinski said. Even though they’re only parts for temporary, the fasteners have to be custom-made, to fit moving parts. This is no easy task. the 787 different-sized holes, and they’d be the most-rushed of “In 125 years, the Spokesman-Review has never and other rush orders, given the tight deadlines if the 787 is going missed getting an edition of this family-owned newspa- Boeing jet to fly by year’s end. per printed. As one of the people charged with main- programs. Continued on page 3 taining the equipment, I want to make sure we don’t Continued on page 12 Unanimous Pension Policy Inside Index Ratification Important information President's Message ......2 Members approve new members at Boeing Health Plan Options .... 6 contract at Allied Waste that should know on their Retirement...................... 9 includes 3 percent wage pension Want Ads ........................10 increases each year 12 2 Eastern Washington .... 12 Page 2 751 AERO MECHANIC November 2009 REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT Members are the Fundamental Operating Engine of Boeing benefits. more years – and a few more missed by Tom Wroblewski, one ever thought possible. But we couldn’t reach a deal, deadlines – maybe Boeing will start to And it’s you – alongside our Union District President because the Company didn’t want see the truth of something that Ben brothers and sisters from SPEEA – who I don’t need to tell you one. They never told us what they Franklin said long ago: “The bitterness are solving all the problems with the that the Boeing Co.’s de- wanted — and absolutely never of poor quality remains long after the 787. cision to put the second told us that time was running out. sweetness of low price is forgotten.” The South Carolina politicians are 787 line in Charleston was Instead, we found out the hard way Boeing’s said a lot of things over the congratulating themselves on winning a huge disappointment, that they’d set an arbitrary dead- past couple weeks that are misleading, good Boeing jobs. But the reality is, and one that by every ob- line; when it passed, they just untruthful and sometimes just plain stu- there won’t be any new jobs in South jective measure is simply walked away. They’ve set a lot of pid. (They want to “diversify their manu- Carolina if our members here in Puget baffling. Instead of investing in a profit- unrealistic deadlines with the 787. This facturing base” because we have earth- Sound can’t find solutions for all the able shared future here in Puget Sound, was just one more. quakes here every 50 years or so – so 787’s problems. We’re the ones with the with the people who have spent genera- It’s obvious to me that Boeing wasn’t they move to a part of the country that knowledge, experience and dedication tions making Boeing a world leader, the really interested in working with us.