Boeing workers at three Midwest plants have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer, extending a strike that has now lasted nearly six weeks. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 announced Friday that 57 percent of its 3,200 members voted against the proposal.
The striking employees are responsible for building fighter jets, weapons systems, and the U.S. Navy’s first carrier-based unmanned aircraft.
“Boeing’s modified offer did not include a sufficient signing bonus relative to what other Boeing workers have received, or a raise in 401(k) benefits,” said the union in a statement.
Dan Gillian, vice president and general manager of Boeing Air Dominance, responded by saying: “We’re disappointed our employees have rejected a 5-year offer, including 45% average wage growth. We’ve made clear the overall economic framework of our offer will not change, but we have consistently adjusted the offer based on employee and union feedback to better address their concerns.”
Gillian also stated there are no further talks scheduled. “We will continue to execute our contingency plan, including hiring permanent replacement workers, as we maintain support for our customers,” he said.
The strike began August 4 and has halted work at facilities critical to Boeing’s Defense, Space & Security business segment. This division contributes more than one-third of Boeing’s total revenue.
Prior to this vote, negotiations included an earlier proposed agreement with a 20 percent wage increase over the life of the contract and $5,000 ratification bonuses. After those terms were rejected last month, Boeing removed a scheduling provision that impacted overtime pay but did not raise wages in its revised proposal; workers turned down that offer as well before starting their strike.
The current walkout is smaller than last year’s seven-week strike involving about 33,000 commercial jetliner assembly workers in Washington state. That stoppage came during heightened scrutiny on Boeing following federal investigations into safety issues related to its aircraft fleet after several high-profile incidents and crashes.
