Will Unions Clip Boeing's Wings?

IBD Editorials ^ | April 26, 2011 | Staff

[Cementjungle]

At our Puget Sound Apartment Owners’ Association meeting tonight we had a guest speaker from our regional Economic Development Council (a quasi-government entity). He seemed very sure of himself when he said the Dreamliner would be built here in Seattle.

[railroader]

I was a member of this union when I worked for The Milwaukee Road railroad. Had to be to work there. That railroad no longer exists.

I doubt the Milwaukee Road's unions helped matters (a la Rock Island Lines), but that railroad's December 1977 bankruptcy actually allowed it to downsize and reorganize into a profitable system (helped out by the rate-making freedoms allowed under the Staggers Act). So much so, that the Chicago & North Western and Soo Line started a bidding war for the carrier. The latter won out, and much of the Milwaukee Road is now part of the Canadian Pacific, and also some shortline and regional railroads.

[Ronin]

What’s to stop Boeing from moving out of the country? I am sure Japan would love to have an assembly line.

[Always Independent]

Northrop is proudly a NONUNION aircraft division company. Yes even in Kalifornia!

[Lexinom]

It would serve the state right. WA is an embarrassment to the Republic.

[liberty_lvr]

Actually, Boeing is the industry. There are no other large aircraft manufacturers in the US, and only Airbus over in Europe (until the Chinese finish stealing the technology they need to start up their own). So yes, they will wag the whole dog because they are the dog.

They will not be screwed out of the new facility. This is nothing more than a shakedown and Boeing knows it. The plant is already established and scheduled to begin production in July of this year. All that's left to be settled is how much blood money has to be paid to the IAM, as decided by Obama's goons on the NLRB.

BTW, this new plant is a model of modern green technology and energy efficiency - technologies heavily subsidized by federal money. Look at this as Boeing helping it's buddy Zero funnel more tax payer dollars to his union pals by passing along some of that federal largesse.

[kickonly88]

I remember the way the union always did things for the good of the union not necessarily the good of the company.

[jmcenanly]

How bad are things in Seattle if you have to move to Chicago for a more business-friendly climate?

[4Liberty]

Can you believe these labor cartels are complaining about Boeing’s “retaliation,” due to THEIR OWN price fixing & restraint-of-trade practices?

These unions are a bunch of Marxist bullies.

Union “organizers” should be doing the Perp Walk — and Boeing deserves a settlement for DAMAGES caused by protectionist labor cartel’s COLLUSIVE BEHAVIOR, INFLUENCE PEDDLING, ANTI-COMPETITIVE CONDUCT, RACKETEERING.

[4Liberty]