Boeing to start contract negotiations with Seattle-area union on March 8

WASHINGTON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Boeing and its Seattle-area machinists union will open negotiations on a new contract on March 8, a union spokesperson said on Friday.

Formal negotiations between the U.S. planemaker and its largest union — District 751 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers — were set to begin in early February, but the start date was pushed back at Boeing's request after a Jan. 5 in-flight cabin blowout on a 737 MAX 9.

IAM District 751's contract agreement with Boeing ends at midnight on Sept. 12.

The union, which represents about 31,000 workers in the area around Puget Sound, Washington, will be looking to obtain wage increases of around 40% over the three- to four-year life of the contract and will propose reinstating pensions, which were phased out in a 2014 deal, IAM District 751 President Jon Holden said in a recent interview with Reuters.

It will also seek a commitment from Boeing to build its next airplane in the Puget Sound area, Holden said. "That's the commitment our members have earned."

Labor makes up less than 15% of the total cost of a Boeing aircraft, with engineering, support and manufacturing jobs built into that figure, Boeing Chief Financial Officer Brian West said during an investors conference on Tuesday.

Asked about Boeing's strategy for negotiations, West said, "We fully expect to get to a point that we have an agreement and work constructively with our partners in the IAM."