Boeing and IAMAW Local Lodge 1163 have reached a new three-year collective bargaining agreement that affects 92 employees of the Checkout, Assembly and Payload Processing Services (CAPPS) program at Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

"This agreement demonstrates to the customer, management and employees our willingness and commitment to work together," said Brewster Shaw, vice president and general manager, Boeing Space Exploration.

The new contract, effective Aug. 12 at 12:01 a.m., follows six days of negotiations between Boeing and the IAMAW bargaining team. Boeing presented its best and final offer on Aug. 7, and the union's leadership recommended that the members vote to approve the agreement.

Under the CAPPS contract with NASA, Boeing's responsibilities include payload processing, mission cargo preparations, testing for launch vehicle compatibility, post-mission payload extraction and operation/maintenance of associated facilities and ground systems.

The Boeing payload team operates out of the Kennedy Space Center's Space Station Processing Facility and various clean rooms used for satellite processing. Boeing crews and teammates have processed every space shuttle payload, a legacy that began with Columbia's maiden flight in April 1981.

About 535 Boeing personnel and 300 subcontractors and partners support Boeing on its CAPPS contract.

FMI: www.boeing.com, http://www.goiam.org/