WICHITA, Kansas - Machinists vote to reject the contract offer from Hawker Beechcraft in a 55 to 45 percent vote.
The contract for employees included a 10% pay cut, an increase in health care costs, and shut down several production lines leaving more than 800 union members out of a job."It's all about corporate greed," said Kevin Mahaffey, who voted for the contract. "They can’t get any more money for their product so they're going to take it out of our pockets."
"I think this is a low down deal the way they did things," added Ralph Paulk. "I think their plans have been set for a long time. This is just a sham."
Earlier this month an emergency meeting was called in Topeka where Governor Parkinson offered Hawker Beechcraft an incentive package to keep the company in Kansas.
That incentive deal is now off the table with the union's vote to reject a 7-year extension.
Hawker Beechcraft Corporation Chairman and CEO Bill Boisture issued this statement following the announcement Saturday afternoon: "In addition to the proposed incentive package from the State of Kansas, we presented the union with our best offer and are disappointed with the outcome of the vote. The company will continue exploring all options and making a series of business decisions in order to remain profitable and competitive in this smaller market."
Union leaders worry it’s now more likely HBC will leave Kansas. But they say it appears the company asked its workers to sacrifice too much with little guarantee Hawker would stay if the contract was approved.
"They decided to hold on to what they have right now," said union spokesperson Rita Rogers. "They feel they've had enough. They spoke and we're going to respect their position and move on."
Where they move to isn't immediately clear. Workers return to the job Monday with more than 9 months left on the current deal. There are no plans right now to re-open negotiations with HBC
Union leaders say Hawker officials have recently received an offer to move the company to Louisiana.
Continue to check KSN.com for more as this story unfolds.
