Boeing workers in St Louis, United States, will continue striking after rejecting a new contract offer. Photo / Getty Images
Boeing workers in St Louis, United States, will continue striking after rejecting a new contract offer. Photo / Getty Images
Boeing workers at its area defence factories in St Louis, United States, will stay on strike after union members voted Saturday to reject a new contract offer from the US aviation giant.
The strike began August 4, involving some 3200 workers in Missouri and Illinois represented by the International Associationof Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 837.
This is the third time workers have rejected a company offer and Boeing said in a statement no further talks were currently scheduled.
“Boeing’s modified offer did not include a sufficient signing bonus relative to what other Boeing workers have received,” the union said in a statement, in which it also cited the lack of improvement in other benefits.
IAM is among the biggest unions in North America, representing 600,000 members in aerospace, defence, shipbuilding, transportation, healthcare, manufacturing and other industries.
Products made at Boeing’s St Louis operation include the F-15 and F-18 combat aircraft, the T-7 Red Hawk Advanced Pilot Training System and the MQ-25 unmanned aircraft.
The site was originally part of the McDonnell Douglas company, which Boeing acquired in 1997.
“We’re disappointed our employees have rejected a five-year offer, including 45% average wage growth,” said Dan Gillian, a senior St Louis site executive with Boeing.
Strike action involving 3200 Boeing workers began on August 4 and is set to continue after they rejected a third offer from the aviation company. Photo / Getty Images
He said the company had adjusted its offer based on feedback to address workers’ concerns.
“We will continue to execute our contingency plan, including hiring permanent replacement workers, as we maintain support for our customers,” Gillian said.
Boeing announced last week it was launching a recruitment drive to find “permanent” manufacturing workers to replace the striking employees.
The latest strike comes after a larger stoppage in Boeing’s commercial aviation business involving some 33,000 workers.
In 2024, they halted production at Pacific Northwest factories for more than seven weeks.
