Union machinists held talks with Boeing on 777X

(Reuters) - The union representing Boeing Co's Seattle area machinists said its leaders had met with top executives of the airplane maker on Tuesday about restarting talks that could see the new 777X jetliner built in Washington state, where the current 777 is built. The meeting came after union members last month roundly rejected a labor contract offer by Boeing that would have ensured the new jet was built in the Seattle area. On its website, the International Association of Machinists District 751 said its president, Tom Wroblewski, and other union representatives had met on Tuesday with Boeing Commercial Airplanes Chief Executive Ray Conner and other executives from the company. "The meeting was not a formal negotiating session, but instead was a chance for both sides to give feedback," the union said. "No proposals were exchanged." Boeing confirmed that the meeting with Conner and other Boeing officials took place. "We have regular conversations with the IAM on a variety of topics, but we keep those conversations private," Boeing spokesman Doug Alder said. "This was not a negotiation session." Tuesday was the day that proposals were due from more than a dozen states to build the 777X in their areas, which would take the work away from the machinists in the Seattle area. Shares of Boeing were down 0.8 percent at $132.60 in morning trading. (Reporting by Alwyn Scott; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)