Over 3,000 Boeing defense workers go on strike amid contract dispute
More than 3,200 workers of Boeing, who assemble its fighter jets in the St. Louis area and Illinois, went on strike on Monday after rejecting a second contract offer the previous day, dealing a fresh blow to the aviation giant after last year's strike. Boeing Defense said it was prepared for the work stoppage and would implement a contingency plan that utilizes non-labor personnel.
According to the company, the rejected four-year contract would have increased the average wage by roughly 40% and included a 20% general wage increase, as well as a $5,000 ratification bonus. It also included increasing periodic raises, as well as more vacation time and sick leave.
'We're disappointed our employees in St. Louis rejected an offer that featured 40% average wage growth,' Dan Gillian, Boeing vice president and general manager of the St. Louis facilities, said in a statement.
The offer was largely the same as the first one, which was overwhelmingly rejected just one week earlier. Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers' (IAM) District 837 'deserve a contract that reflects their skill, dedication, and the critical role they play in our nation's defense,' District 837 head Tom Boelling said in a statement.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg downplayed the impact of a strike when talking with analysts on Tuesday about second quarter earnings, noting that the company had weathered a seven-week strike last year by District 751 members, who build commercial jets in the Northwest and number 33,000.
'I wouldn't worry too much about the implications of the strike. We'll manage our way through that,' he said.
District 837 workers assemble Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18 fighters, the T-7 trainer, and the MQ-25, an aerial refueling drone being developed for the U.S. Navy.
Boeing's defense division is expanding its manufacturing facilities in the St. Louis area to support the new U.S. Air Force fighter jet, the F-47A, following its contract win this year.
District 751's strike ended with approval of a four-year contract that included a 38% wage increase.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Qatar Tribune
3 days ago
- Qatar Tribune
Cathay Pacific unveils deal to buy 14 Boeing jets
Agencies Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific said Wednesday it would place an US$8.1-billion order for 14 Boeing jets, its first with the US aircraft maker for more than a decade. In a filing to the city's stock exchange, the airline said it would 'purchase 14 Boeing 777-9 aircraft' and had 'secured the right to acquire up to seven additional Boeing 777-9 aircraft'. Cathay already has a fleet of more than 230 mostly passenger aircraft. The new order expects the aircraft to be delivered by 2034, according to a separate filing. Cathay was one of the first buyers to commit to Boeing's 777X program when it unveiled the purchase of 21 aircraft in said in a statement the new deal brought the order book of 777-9 aircraft—'the world's largest twin-engine airplane'—to 35. The jets, designed to reduce fuel use and emissions, would meet Cathay's growing global travel demand, Boeing added. Hong Kong's aviation sector was hit hard by COVID-era policies, which imposed strict rules on travelers that kept it internationally isolated before they were lifted in late 2022. In 2024 Cathay's attributable profit rose slightly to US$1.27 billion and it announced earlier this year that its flights were finally back to pre-pandemic levels. On Wednesday, the firm reported its attributable profit rose slightly to HK$3.65 billion in the first six months of 2025, benefiting from a pick-up in travel demand in Asia. Total revenue in that period increased 9.5 percent to US$6.92 billion. The company also declared an interim dividend of HK$20 cents per share. Chairman Patrick Healy heralded a 'solid financial performance' in the filing. 'Our first-half result was driven by higher passenger volumes albeit with lower yields, a consistent cargo performance, and lower fuel price compared with the same period in 2024,' Healy said. The company's passenger airlines, including Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong Express, have launched or announced 19 new destinations so far in 2025, with 'more to come', he said, adding that they now fly to more than 100 passenger destinations.
Qatar Tribune
5 days ago
- Qatar Tribune
Over 3,000 Boeing defense workers go on strike amid contract dispute
Agencies More than 3,200 workers of Boeing, who assemble its fighter jets in the St. Louis area and Illinois, went on strike on Monday after rejecting a second contract offer the previous day, dealing a fresh blow to the aviation giant after last year's strike. Boeing Defense said it was prepared for the work stoppage and would implement a contingency plan that utilizes non-labor personnel. According to the company, the rejected four-year contract would have increased the average wage by roughly 40% and included a 20% general wage increase, as well as a $5,000 ratification bonus. It also included increasing periodic raises, as well as more vacation time and sick leave. 'We're disappointed our employees in St. Louis rejected an offer that featured 40% average wage growth,' Dan Gillian, Boeing vice president and general manager of the St. Louis facilities, said in a statement. The offer was largely the same as the first one, which was overwhelmingly rejected just one week earlier. Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers' (IAM) District 837 'deserve a contract that reflects their skill, dedication, and the critical role they play in our nation's defense,' District 837 head Tom Boelling said in a statement. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg downplayed the impact of a strike when talking with analysts on Tuesday about second quarter earnings, noting that the company had weathered a seven-week strike last year by District 751 members, who build commercial jets in the Northwest and number 33,000. 'I wouldn't worry too much about the implications of the strike. We'll manage our way through that,' he said. District 837 workers assemble Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18 fighters, the T-7 trainer, and the MQ-25, an aerial refueling drone being developed for the U.S. Navy. Boeing's defense division is expanding its manufacturing facilities in the St. Louis area to support the new U.S. Air Force fighter jet, the F-47A, following its contract win this year. District 751's strike ended with approval of a four-year contract that included a 38% wage increase.
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Al Jazeera
Builders of Boeing weapons and fighter jets go on strike
Thousands of workers at Boeing plants across the United States that develop military aircraft and weapons have gone on strike. The strike began Monday at Boeing facilities in St Louis and St Charles, Missouri, as well as Mascoutah, Illinois, after failed negotiations over wage increases and other provisions of a new contract. About 3,200 local members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers voted Sunday to reject a modified four-year labour agreement, the union said. 'IAM District 837 members build the aircraft and defense systems that keep our country safe,' Sam Cicinelli, the general vice president of the union's Midwest division, said in a statement. 'They deserve nothing less than a contract that keeps their families secure and recognizes their unmatched expertise.' The vote followed a weeklong cooling-off period after the workers rejected an earlier proposed contract, which included a 20 percent wage increase over four years and $5,000 ratification bonuses. Boeing warned over the weekend that it anticipated the strike after workers rejected its latest offer, which did not further boost the proposed wage hike. However, the proposal removed a scheduling provision that would have affected workers' ability to earn overtime pay. 'We're disappointed our employees rejected an offer that featured 40 percent average wage growth and resolved their primary issue on alternative work schedules,' said Dan Gillian, Boeing Air Dominance vice president and general manager, and senior St Louis site executive. 'We are prepared for a strike and have fully implemented our contingency plan to ensure our non-striking workforce can continue supporting our customers.' Boeing's Defense, Space & Security business accounts for more than one-third of the company's revenue. But Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg told analysts last week that the impact from a strike by the machinists who build fighter jets, weapons systems and the US Navy's first carrier-based unmanned aircraft would be much less than a walkout last year by 33,000 workers who assemble the company's commercial jetliners. 'The order of magnitude of this is much, much less than what we saw last fall,' Ortberg said. 'So we'll manage through this. I wouldn't worry too much about the implications of the strike.' The 2024 strike shut down Boeing's factories in Washington state for more than seven weeks at a bleak time for the company. Boeing came under several federal investigations last year after a door plug blew off a 737 Max plane during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. The Federal Aviation Administration put limits on Boeing plane production that it said would last until the agency felt confident about manufacturing quality safeguards at the company. The door-plug incident renewed concerns about the safety of the 737 Max. Two of the planes crashed less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people. Ortberg told analysts that the company has slowly worked its way up to an FAA-set 737 Max production cap of 38 per month and expects to ask regulators later this year for permission to go beyond it. Last week, Boeing reported that its second-quarter revenue had improved and its losses had narrowed. The company lost $611m in the second quarter, compared to a loss of $1.44bn during the same period last year. Boeing's stock tumbled on the news of the strike. Trending downwards earlier in the day, it has since been trending upwards, but is still below the market open by 0.26 percent as of 12:30pm ET (16:30 GMT).
