Boeing Contract Talks Break Down

Negotiations between the Boeing Co. and the Machinists Union broke off Saturday, with a union official calling the aerospace giant’s offer to end the month-old strike and resume production an “insult.”

Mediator Douglas Hammond said that he decided to end the latest round of talks Saturday, but he refused to say what led to the breakdown in negotiations. No further talks were scheduled after six straight days of face-to-face meetings, he said.

Hammond said that both sides had worked hard to reach an agreement but ultimately they “continued to agree to disagree.”

Tom Baker, president of Machinists District Lodge 751, emerged from the 2 1/2-hour session saying Boeing’s newest offer was an “insult” and little better than the contract the union overwhelmingly rejected Oct. 3.

Larry McKean, Boeing’s chief negotiator, said that the company had made a good proposal with adjustments to cost-of-living provisions and bonuses.