Boeing St. Louis Machinists End 15-Week Strike

This article covers the end of a contentious 15-week strike by Boeing machinists in St. Louis, analyzing the contract settlement and the company's aggressive negotiating tactics.

Key Points

• Strike Duration and Outcome: St. Louis-area Boeing machinists returned to work after reaching a new contract agreement, ending a 15-week strike with a 68% to 32% vote on the company's fifth contract proposal—the sixth vote overall since the strike began August 4

• Workers Affected: The roughly 3,200 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 who assemble Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18 fighter jets, the T-7 trainer aircraft, munitions, and wing sections for the 777X commercial jet

• Contract Terms: The contract includes a 24% general wage increase over five years—8% in the first year and 4% in each of the following years—and a $6,000 signing bonus

• Compromise Settlement: Labor experts said time caught up to the strikers; after more than three months of missing paychecks and losing health insurance, members settled for less than the union proposed

• Aggressive Tactics: Compared to negotiations with Seattle Boeing workers in 2024, company leadership in St. Louis responded more aggressively to the strike. One of the company's main threats to St. Louis workers was hiring permanent replacements, and the company said it already hired some—a strategy not employed in Seattle

• Congressional Pressure: The Congressional Labor Caucus had sent a letter to Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg urging the company to return to the bargaining table, and Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri also sent his own letter demanding the company negotiate in good faith

Author: Kayla Drake
Source: St. Louis Public Radio
Link: https://www.stlpr.org/economy-business/2025-11-20/boeing-labor-dispute-st-louis-machinists-union-strike