Onex still wants to buy Boeing plant

Union's contract rejection doesn't deter investment firm from plans

? The proposed buyer of Boeing Co.’s commercial aircraft division in Wichita said Thursday it was not backing out of the deal after losing a key contract vote with the plant’s largest union.

Nigel Wright, Onex Corp.’s managing director, said he expected Onex would complete its acquisition of Boeing’s operations in Wichita, Tulsa and McAlester, Okla., by mid-June.

“Onex is firmly committed to this business,” Wright said. “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.”

Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which represents 5,300 of the plant’s 7,200 workers, voted down a contract proposal from Onex on Tuesday. Onex had said it would walk away from the purchase if the contract failed.

Union members were critical of the contract, which called for a 10 percent pay cut and higher health insurance costs.

In an interview, Wright said Onex would send job offer letters to the union members, offering the same salary and benefits as in the contract. However, he said the members would not be offered an equity stake in the business, as proposed in the original contract, and won’t be eligible for a Machinist union-backed pension plan.

“What we’re going to do is offer appointment letters to people and then hope that they accept them,” he said, adding that the company would not send letters to the almost 800 workers who were not being rehired under the original contract.

Machinist union officials didn’t immediately return phone calls for comment.

Wright said Onex would continue negotiating with the other unions that represent workers at the plants and would extend job offers to those employees during the next three weeks.