Boeing, Machinists reach agreement

Good news, it seems:

The 23-day-old Boeing Machinists strike looks all but over.

Boeing has reached agreement with the union on the terms of a new contract.

The machinists got much of what they wanted. The union leadership is recommending acceptance; rank-and-file members will vote on it Thursday.

"I give credit to the membership. They had the resolve and integrity to stand up for each other," said Mark Blondin, district president of the International Association of Machinists union. "(Boeing management) saw the union is rock solid."

Blondin sealed a tentative agreement late Friday night in Washington D.C. when he shook hands with Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive Alan Mulally and said, "We've got a deal."

Sunday, Blondin emphasized that the deal is tentative until his members vote to accept it.

But with the terms he outlined, ratification seems a formality.

The union had asked for no wage increases, instead demanding higher pensions and holding down of health care costs. They got it.

Congratulations to the Machinists for standing up for workers' rights, and congratulations to Boeing for realizing the importance of reaching out to the union:

Analyst Scott Hamilton said an agreement was good for both sides and will allow Boeing to quickly regain the momentum it has built up this year in its commercial airplane business.

"I think (Boeing) figured that they had more to lose than the gain by continuing to take a hard line," he said.

It looks like everybody's a winner with this settlement.