Malaysian workers vote for union — Boeing fights back

The National Union of Transport Equipment and Allied Industries Workers (NUTEAIW), affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, won a secret ballot at the plant with 85 percent support on 10 December last year. Instead of recognizing the result, BCM management, together with members of the company's Joint Consultative Committee (JCC), pressured workers to sign a petition against the union. Workers describe signing under duress, in an atmosphere of fear.

BCM then used those signatures to file a judicial review at the high court on 10 February 2026, seeking to overturn the democratic vote.

NUTEAIW general secretary Gopal Kishnam Nadesan says:

"The post-election petition manufactured by the employer has no legal standing in the Industrial Relations Act and serves only to undermine the democratic process. The law clearly prohibits an employer from interfering with employees exercising their right to join a trade union. This is the utmost disrespect of the democratic process and workers' freedom of association."

Malaysia has ratified ILO Convention 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining. The Convention protects worker organizations against interference by employers in their establishment or functioning.

IndustriALL regional secretary for South-East Asia Ramon Certeza says:

"BCM's acts of union busting have clearly violated international and domestic labour law. IndustriALL stands in solidarity with NUTEAIW members and urges the Malaysian government to intervene in the dispute immediately, requesting the company to drop the judicial review and grant recognition voluntarily."

BCM is wholly owned by the Boeing Company and produces composite and structural products for Boeing commercial aircraft. The company acquired the Aerospace Composites Malaysia manufacturing facility and renamed it in 2023.