The 3,200 union machinists at Boeing [BA] plants in Mascoutah, Ill., and St. Charles and St. Louis, Mo.–among whom will be those helping to build the U.S. Air Force’s F-47 fighter, went on strike on Monday after rejecting company offers on July 27 and Sunday.
Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 837 said that they wanted accelerated wage progression.
The strike follows a 53-day IAM strike at Boeing’s commercial production line in the Pacific Northwest last year and is the first to hit the St. Louis operations since a 99-day strike from June 5, 1996 to September 12 that year at the then McDonnell Douglas (Defense Daily, Nov. 5, 2024). Boeing and McDonnell Douglas merged on Aug. 1, 1997.
Last week Dan Gillian, vice president and general manager for air dominance and senior St. Louis site executive for Boeing, said that the company had met all the IAM demands and had “activated our contingency plan and are focused on preparing for a strike” (Defense Daily, July 28).
The machinists voted on July 27 to reject a company contract offer despite their leadership having reached a tentative deal with Boeing that would increase general wages 20 percent over the four-year contract term, provide a $5,000 ratification bonus, and include improved medical and pension benefits.
Boeing builds the Air Force F-15 and Navy F/A-18 fighters, the Air Force T-7A Red Hawk trainer, the Navy MQ-25 unmanned aerial refueling tanker, missiles, and other systems in St. Louis area plants in Missouri and Illinois. Boeing in March won the Air Force competition to develop and build the F-47 in St. Louis.
Boeing said its contract offer would have grown annual wages to $102,600 from the current $75,000.
“IAM District 837 members have spoken loud and clear,” Tom Boelling, an IAM District 837 representative, said in statement on Sunday. “They deserve a contract that reflects their skill, dedication, and the critical role they play in our nation’s defense.”
