IAM 751 President Jason Chan Wants to Grow the Labor Movement, One Member at a Time

July 15, 2026

As he takes the helm at one of the Puget Sound’s largest and most influential unions, new International Association of Machinists (IAM) District 751 President Jason Chan sees a clear goal: “The labor movement needs to grow.”

An Unexpected Journey

Chan’s path to union leadership was unlikely. He wasn’t born into a Boeing family, a place known for its multigenerational workforce. In fact, he’s the first in his family to hold a union job. His father passed away when he was one and he was raised by his mother in Seattle. She worked hard to give him opportunities, but he saw the challenges they faced.

He started his career at a local bank, but when it was bought out, the culture shift made him reconsider his future. In 2007, he applied for a job at Boeing after a friend’s recommendation.

Chan was hired as an assembly mechanic at the Renton Boeing factory, working the second shift. He took a pay cut to join Boeing, but because of the guaranteed raises in his union contract, he knew that in a few years he’d be making more than he was at the bank.

On his first day, he was approached by the shop steward on his shift and invited to attend the Local Lodge meeting. He said yes, not realizing how profoundly it would shape his life.

He attended the meeting out of intrigue and was immediately welcomed as part of the family. “At that time in my life, I was looking for a sense of belonging, and my union provided it,” Chan recalls.

Career at IAM and Boeing

Two events early in Chan’s Boeing career left a lasting impression.

First was the infamous 57-day strike in 2008, where he saw the sacrifices workers often must make to win strong contracts. It quickly became evident that his union contract was not given, it was earned by the determination and solidarity of generations of workers before him.

Second were the concessions the union made in the aftermath of the Great Recession. Under intense pressure from Boeing and a threat to move jobs out of state, workers agreed to extend their contract twice and ultimately freeze the defined‑benefit pension — something generations of members had fought for.

As a member, Chan fought against these concessions. He remembers a conversation with a friend who asked him what would happen if Boeing moved union jobs out of state. His response was rooted in principle.

“I’ve lived on minimum wage before and I could do it again if I had to. Sometimes we have to stand up and fight for what we believe in,” he recalls saying.

These events illustrated to Chan the power of collective action, but also the fragility of the benefits union workers enjoy. In the decade that followed, a new generation of leaders emerged, including new President Jon Holden, who worked tirelessly to rebuild lost trust with the rank‑and‑file membership.

The Union That Helped Shape Our Region

IAM District 751 is one of the most storied labor unions in the Pacific Northwest. It was chartered in 1935 with 35 founding members who signed their first collective bargaining agreement with Boeing a year later. For nearly a century, the union has grown alongside Boeing and become an institution for tens of thousands of working families.

The union has been shaped by a deep sense of identity among its members. In good times and bad, it has provided workers a voice at one of the state’s largest employers. It could be argued that no institution has done more to build Seattle’s middle class.

Stepping Into Leadership at a Critical Time

More than 18 years after his first union meeting, Chan was elected President and Directing Business Representative of IAM 751 this past April. The union represents roughly 34,000 workers across the Pacific Northwest. The majority of the membership works at Boeing in Renton, Everett, and the greater Seattle region. But increasingly, the union has been organizing in other sectors.

Chan is well aware of the union’s history and the importance of maintaining trust with the membership. He seeks to be radically honest and transparent with members about what needs to be done.

“As a leader, you can’t run from conflict,” he says. “You have to face these things head-on.”

District 751 members are just over a year removed from a 53‑day strike that ended in late 2024. A Boeing job remains one of the strongest paths to the middle class for thousands of workers across the region. It is also one of the state’s most racially diverse employers, with strong populations of Black, Latino, and East Asian workers.

But like many blue-collar jobs in America, the future is uncertain. Chan is determined to use the full power of IAM 751 to defend these jobs and improve livelihoods.

“The Labor Movement has to grow”

Ask Chan about his top priority and the answer comes without hesitation: organizing new union members. Union density in the United States has been in decline for decades, and the consequences are obvious. Working people increasingly struggle to keep up with the cost of living. Union members enjoy better pay and benefits, but non-union work inevitably reduces everyone’s standards.

“The Labor Movement has to grow,” he declares. “We have to combat corporate misinformation and spread the benefits of having a union. We need to do a better job of sharing all that we have won.”

Chan understands that the working class spans the political divide, but he sees the union hall as a rare place where it’s possible to break those barriers. “Unions must overcome polarization and divisions and show that the benefits of a union are for everyone,” he says.

The Power Comes From the Floor

As he settles into his new role, Chan feels a deep sense of honor in steering IAM 751 into the future. He will lean heavily into his experience, both as a rank-and-file member shaped by the 2008 strike and Great Recession, and as a union staff member for the past eight years.

He acknowledges the union leaders whose mentorship and support helped shape him for this opportunity. “I take a piece of everyone that I’ve worked with or worked for and made it a part of me. That’s how I got to where I am today,” he explains.

Perhaps the most foundational part of Chan’s vision is that union strength is built from the bottom up, not handed down from leadership.

“The power comes from the shop floor,” he says. “Members are the union, and we can never forget that.”