LOS ANGELES – Boeing’s United States West Coast factory workers stood in long lines to vote on Thursday on a much-criticised new contract, some loudly calling for a strike, piling pressure on the planemaker as it wrestles with chronic production delays and mounting debt.

A potential strike could start on Friday, which would be a big early blow to new CEO Kelly Ortberg, brought on last month to restore faith in the planemaker after a door panel blew off a near-new 737 MAX jet in midair in January. Roughly 30,000 workers who produce Boeing’s 737 MAX, 767 and 777 jets in the Seattle and Portland areas are voting on their first full contract in 16 years.

Polling will close at 6pm local time (01:00 GMT Friday) and the result will be announced this evening, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) said. If a strike is sanctioned, it could start at midnight.

The proposed deal includes a general wage increase of 25 percent, a $3,000 signing bonus and a pledge to build Boeing’s next commercial jet in the Seattle area, provided the programme is launched within the four years of the contract.

Although the IAM leadership recommended its members accept the deal on Sunday, some workers have responded angrily, with many arguing for the originally demanded 40 percent pay rise and lamenting the loss of an annual bonus. (Aljazeera)