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The Health and Safety Institute (HSI) and Quality Through Training Program (QTTP) were established in the 1989 International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (IAM) and The Boeing Company Collective Bargaining Agreement for districts 751, 70 and 24.
A well-publicized health concern at one of Boeing's Puget Sound, Washington, plants launched the interest of both the company and union to jointly address workplace health issues and concerns for IAM-represented employees at Boeing. The new partnership also created an occasion to focus on enhancing employee opportunities for education, job skills and career development through QTTP. Two years later, the Return to Work (now known as Vocational Solutions) program was established to address the needs of injured employees and written into the 1992 collective bargaining agreement. The umbrella organization, IAM/Boeing Joint Programs, was established in 1999 to oversee the administration and direction of the three programs. Recognizing the value of the partnership, the company and union have continued to negotiate the programs into subsequent collective bargaining agreements.
Today, although the IAM/Boeing Joint Programs organization's primary objective is to improve the health, safety and educational opportunities for IAM-represented employees at The Boeing Company, the joint partnership performs another very important function. The partnership is a crucial component of the People Working Together model at the company. IAM/Boeing Joint Programs is an equal partnership between the union and the company. Its leadership, staff and services reflect a balanced governing responsibility. This balanced responsibility has enabled IAM/Boeing Joint Programs to operate as a credible resource for both labor and management.
The labor-management partnership between IAM and Boeing has received national and international recognition. IAM/Boeing Joint Programs is considered to be one of the premier joint programs in the nation and has been modeled by other joint programs in the U.S. International delegates from countries as far away as Taiwan, China and Korea have visited the IAM/Boeing Joint Programs Puget Sound, Washington, offices to gather information that can be used to strengthen labor-management relations in their home countries.
Their demonstrated commitment to partnership has made IAM and Boeing national and international leaders in labor-management relations.
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