New machinist union president discusses Spirit workers’ thoughts on upcoming transition

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Spirit AeroSystems workers face many questions as Boeing plans to acquire the company , and the new local machinist union president is discussing the next steps.

Lisa Whitley took over as president of the IAMAW District Lodge 70 on June 1. She said she is the fourth generation in the industry.

Whitley said there have been many tense conversations with workers in the last couple of months, who are bracing for what to expect when Boeing officially takes over Spirit. She believes machinists and every worker on the floor want to help push past the controversy that this year has brought Spirit and Boeing.

The two companies have had many pension questions, and conversations can be tough because the unknown outlook can be scary. Whitley feels this is an eerily similar time to when Boeing sold and left Wichita nearly two decades ago.

“I think it’s just really worrisome for everybody. You go back to 2005 when Boeing sold to Spirit, there was a lot of uncertainty, and it was a rough time for Wichita, it was a rough time for machinists, and the union, all those concerns are coming back up,” said Whitley.

“What’s going to happen to our pay?” “What’s going to happen to our jobs in general?” “Will we still be employed come time for the holidays?” These are all questions Whitley said have been asked by current Spirit employees.

She said they are still day-to-day operational as Spirit for the time being, with the sale expected to close sometime in mid-2025.

Even though contracts were taken care of in Wichita last summer, Whitley said that would not stop Boeing from potentially ripping them up and starting over. Adding that, at the end of the day, machinists want to be a part of a positive path forward.

“The machinists and I think everybody on the floor wants to work with Boeing, wants to work with Spirit, to get us back to where we were. A lot of bad things have happened, a lot of controversy, and I think all the workers want to be a part of that solution,” said Whitley.

The machinists union currently represents over 6,000 skilled employees at Spirit.

Whitley shares that they are monitoring contract negotiations for machinists at Boeing’s facility in Everett, Washington, this fall. She believes that if a strike were to result from those talks, it could have a serious impact on Wichita.

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