Experts say wrangling between Onex, machinists has weakened union

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ Two days after the largest union at Boeing Co.'s Wichita plant turned down a contract offer from <b><a class="headlinelink" href="http://www.kotv.com/main/home/searchKOTV.asp?mainSearch=Onex">Onex</a></b>

Friday, May 27th 2005, 8:51 am

By: News On 6

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ Two days after the largest union at Boeing Co.'s Wichita plant turned down a contract offer from Onex Corp., the company said Thursday it will go through with its acquisition of the plant and two others in Oklahoma, but offer workers less than what they would have gotten under the plan they rejected.

Labor experts say that's one indication that the unions at the plant _ traditionally some of Wichita's most outspoken blue-collar workers _ have become weaker because of the contract wrangling.

The contract rejected Tuesday by 57 percent of Machinists union members who voted included a 10 percent pay cut and other concessions. The union represents 5,300 of the Wichita plant's 7,200 workers. About 800 of those union members who were told last week that they wouldn't get jobs with Onex were not allowed to vote.

On Thursday, Onex managing director Nigel Wright said the company plans to proceed with acquisition of Boeing operations in Wichita, Tulsa and McAlester, Okla., and expects to complete the deal by mid-June. Earlier this year Onex agreed to buy the three plants for $900 million in cash and assumption of $300 million in debt.

``Onex is firmly committed to this business,'' Wright said in a statement. ``The new company represents the only real option for new investment, new work, new jobs for those who choose to come with us, and greater job security for these communities and the families in them.''

Workers at the Tulsa and McAlester plants were to have voted Thursday on an offer from Onex, but Steve Hendrickson, a spokesman for the Tulsa plant, said it was rescheduled until after Memorial Day.

Wright said in an interview that the Wichita union members would be offered the same salary and benefits as contained in the proposal they turned down, but that now they would not have a chance for an equity stake in the business and won't be eligible for a Machinist union-backed pension plan.

Angry Wichita workers who opposed the offer have blamed Onex, Boeing and their union for not presenting a better proposal. That dissension also has put the union on weaker footing, said Michael LeRoy, professor at the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations at the University of Illinois.

``The union is strongest when they have solidarity,'' LeRoy said. ``This membership is divided, and that has negative implications in the union's bargaining power.''

Gary Chaison, professor of industrial relations at Clark University in Massachusetts, said the unions have lost some clout because the plant _ and industry as a whole _ are downsizing, which makes it hard for the unions to gain concessions.

Plus, Onex isn't under any obligation to sign a new contract anytime soon.

``Time is on Onex's side,'' Chaison said. ``Onex is obligated to make counteroffers, but it is not obliged to make concessions. This can get to be a long, drawn-out process.''

The Society of Professional and Engineering Employees, which is the Wichita plant's second-largest union, has not yet voted on a contract proposal with Onex. SPEEA's Midwest director, Bob Brewer, said it's too early to tell how strong his position will be in contract talks.

The turmoil hasn't been completely without benefits to the unions, though. Since January, SPEEA membership has risen 10 percent to 15 percent, which indicates that workers see the union as their best allies, Brewer said.

If Onex comes through on its promises of filling the plant with work in a few years, the unions will be in a better position to increase their demands, Chaison said.

``In good times, unions can be aggressive,'' he said, ``but in hard times, they may play a more defensive role.''