Boeing Workers In Seattle Go On Strike

Boeing's unionized workers at its major commercial airplane manufacturing hub in the Seattle area have overwhelmingly voted to go on strike starting Sept. 13 after rejecting a proposed contract that was nonetheless endorsed by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 751 and District W24 leadership.

The strike, the first work outage of its kind there since 2008, was the elected outcome after IAM members voted Sept. 12. To start the strike, workers had to both reject the tentative agreement by a simple majority, and then two-thirds had to vote affirmatively to go on strike. Of those who participated, 94.6% rejected the contract, and 96% supported a strike. “The strike will begin at midnight at all designated picket locations,” IAM said.

“This has been a long time coming, our members spoke loud and clear tonight,” Jon Holden, president of IAM District 751, said announcing the result. “Clearly there were aspects of this agreement that weren’t good enough.” 

Boeing’s new CEO Kelly Ortberg had urged workers to support the tentative agreement again Sept. 12: “I ask you not to sacrifice the opportunity to secure our future together, because of the frustrations of the past,” he wrote. The “other path”—a strike—is one “where no one wins,” he added.

The tentative agreement between Boeing and union negotiators, unveiled early Sept. 8, included a 25% wage increase over the contract's life and a variety of other pay and benefits improvements for the 33,000 IAM District 751 and District W24 employees it covers. It also ensured that any new commercial airplane launched during the agreement would be built by the employees.

Specifically, the contract language stipulates that if Boeing's board “makes a decision to formally launch any new commercial airplane model” during the contract's life, the company will place “final assembly, wing fabrication and assembly, major components (fabrication, interiors and wires), fabrication of parts and subassemblies, and delivery operations ... within the union’s jurisdiction in Puget Sound and Portland.” The terms would apply to any new model and all derivatives, the deal said.

But the union had asked for compensation increases around 40% over four years, a Boeing board seat or the return of a pension. This week there was further debate online about whether Boeing’s purported guarantee to build a new airliner in the district’s territory was a meaningless gesture stemming from a technicality that such an aircraft must be formally launched in the next four years.

Boeing and union leaders knew immediately they faced displeasure among the rank-and-file over the Sept. 8 agreement, and District 751 President Jon Holden reportedly acknowledged the next day that the deal likely would be voted down and a strike initiated.

Financial analysts noted long-running resentment among union members for Boeing’s past negotiations. “Whatever the merits of the offer that is on the table from the company, we think that Boeing’s track record with the IAM has left many members spoiling for a fight,” said analysts at Vertical Research Partners early Sept. 12. “The company’s threats to move aircraft production out of Puget Sound allowed it to get more favorable contract agreements in the past, and now the situation is very different.”

Melius Research analysts noted Boeing’s median employee compensation in recent years had paled in comparison to other aerospace and defense companies they followed. “From 2018 to 2023, the median employee compensation within our coverage list grew 12%. In contrast, the total compensation for Boeing’s median employee declined by 6% over that period,” Melius said.