Thirty-three thousand union members at Boeing walked off the job Friday after they overwhelmingly rejected a four-year contract.
Leadership at the International Association of Machinists union had described the rejected deal as one of the “best” it’s ever negotiated with Boeing, saying it would have given raises of at least 25% over four years. The union also said it would increase job security for union members because Boeing promised to build its next commercial jet, which has not yet been announced, at a unionized factory.
Still, 95% of IAM union members voted against the deal, and 96% voted to authorize a strike, according to CNN. The strike began at 2:59 a.m. on Friday, the first strike the company has faced since 2008, which lasted about 50 days.
“This is about fighting for our future,” Jon Holden, president of the largest IAM local chapter, said as he announced the vote results. “We will be back at the table whenever we can get there to drive forward on the issues our members say are important.”
Boeing employs 150,000 people across the country, with around half of them in Washington state. This strike covers about a fifth of the company’s employees. One estimate said this strike could cost Boeing at least $3 billion if it lasts as long as the one in 2008, according to an estimate from Cai von Rumohr, a research analyst at the investment bank TD Cowen.
The company said it is looking to return to the negotiating table.
“The message was clear that the tentative agreement we reached with IAM leadership was not acceptable to the members,” Boeing said in a statement. “We remain committed to resetting our relationship with our employees and the union.”
Kelly Ortberg, Boeing’s new CEO, said union members had been upset over past contract terms but that he wished for them to think past those and vote in favor of the deal. The union members still remember, however, the loss of pension benefits 10 years ago, which they want back, but Boeing did not offer it during the negotiations.
“I know the reaction to our tentative agreement with the IAM has been passionate,” Ortberg wrote to employees. “I understand and respect that passion, but I ask you not to sacrifice the opportunity to secure our future together, because of the frustrations of the past.”
In recent years, Boeing has struggled with a slew of mishaps and fatal plane crashes that have put the company in the hot seat since at least 2018.
Two of its 737 Max planes fatally crashed, one in October 2018 and another in March 2019, killing 346 people and leading to a 20-month grounding of Boeing’s bestselling plane.
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Earlier this year, a door plug blew out a 737 Max operated by Alaska Airlines shortly after takeoff. While no one was seriously injured in that incident, it put the company back in the spotlight. The investigation into that incident revealed the plane had left a Boeing factory without the four bolts needed to hold the door plug in place.
Eight Boeing aircraft flown by United Airlines were also diverted or required an emergency landing shortly after takeoff this spring due to mechanical problems.