Strike appears likely as Boeing machinists vote on contract

(The Center Square) – More than 33,000 union workers are voting Thursday on a contract deal reached by Boeing and union leadership last weekend.

Jon Holden, president of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 751, helped to negotiate the deal, but told the Seattle Times he expected his members to vote down the deal and officially walk off the job at 12:01 a.m. Friday morning.

In a July 26 video update to members, Holden said a new more collaborative working relationship with the new Boeing CEO is what they’re after.

“Recently, Stephanie Pope, CEO of BCA, did put out a message saying she met with me, and we are aligned on the future,” Holden said.

“I did tell her, my hopes for what the future CEO of Boeing would be and how they interact with our union and how they would include our union in the future. I said she has the opportunity to change the relationship that we’ve had over the last 20 years,” he continued. “We need to stop being attacked. We need to be included in the vision for the future. That is something Boeing has the power to do and we’re demanding it in bargaining and that hasn’t happened yet.”

According to Boeing, Pope served as chief operating officer for the company since January 2024. Before that, she was president and CEO of Boeing Global Services.

“We’ll only know if we are aligned about the future of this company as we get through the economic issues, the job security issues that are so critical to our members going forward,” Holden said. “Stand strong, stay together and keep doing what you’re doing and I know we’ll be successful in the end.”

The strike would extend to Boeing’s major production plants in Everett, Renton, and Portland, Ore.

The last contract agreement for machinists in 2008 followed a two-month strike that analysts estimated cost the company more than $2 billion in profits.

A strike at this point, especially if it drags on, would jeopardize industry suppliers and could further deplete Boeing’s aerospace market share at a time when the company is seeking to rebuild its global reputation.

The company believes it has offered a contract that gives workers generous raises, lower health coverage costs and offers a large contribution from the company to employee retirement plans.

The wage increases in Boeing’s offer would raise the wage to $130,000 in four years for the most experienced machinists. The entry-level mechanic wage would rise to $23 an hour immediately and to just over $30 an hour, or $62,400 annually, in four years.

Boeing has also promised to build any new aircraft in the Seattle-Portland region, if launched during the four-year contract.

The union says the offer falls far short of their demands, which include a 40% pay increase and the restoration of pension plans, which were replaced with a 401(k) plan in recent years. The union is also upset about losing the traditional bonuses based on salary, that the company announced in March would be going away.

Boeing said it was overhauling how it pays employee bonuses to emphasize quality and safety.

That announcement came after Boeing scrambled to explain and deal with safety procedures after a door panel detached during a Jan. 5 flight on a new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9.

Under the new annual incentive plans, which will cover executives, managers and employees, safety and quality metrics will now account for 60% of the payout at Boeing’s commercial unit.

On a fact sheet, Boeing details what it calls the historic contract offer made to machinists. Some of those line items include:

A $3,000 lump sum payment within 30 days, if contract is ratified by 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 12, with the ability to defer all or part to your Boeing 401(k);Affordable health care with lower cost share, plus plan improvements like a new free primary care benefit and a new company-paid long-term disability plan;Work-life balance improvements, including a new floating holiday, reduced mandatory overtime and 12 weeks of paid parental leave; andImproved short-term disability insurance Benefit increases to $750 per week from $280 to $330 per week.

Workers could walk off the job if more than 50% of those voting reject the deal and at least two-thirds reaffirm a previous vote to walk out.