Boeing Strike Ends As St. Louis Workers Approve New Labor Deal

(RTTNews) - Boeing (BA) defense workers in the St. Louis area voted to approve a new five-year contract, ending a 101-day walkout that had disrupted production of F-15 and F/A-18 fighters, the T-7 trainer, munitions, and 777X wing assemblies.

About 3,200 members of IAM District 837 voted 68 percent in favor of the deal and will begin returning to work as early as Sunday.

Union leaders said members stayed unified for more than three months and were ready to resume building military aircraft. Boeing also welcomed the vote, saying it looked forward to restoring operations on November 17.

The strike began on August 4 after workers rejected earlier contract proposals. Members had demanded a higher ratification bonus and stronger retirement contributions, similar to the deal Boeing reached with Seattle-area machinists last year. Boeing refused to increase the overall value of the offer, but earlier this week adjusted the bonus structure by raising the upfront incentive to $6,000 while cutting later-year bonuses. The rest of the package, including a 24 percent wage increase over five years, remained largely unchanged.

Some workers said many had grown tired of the strike and felt financial pressure heading into the holidays. Lawmakers from both parties had urged Boeing to negotiate, and the union had filed an unfair labor practice complaint accusing the company of bad-faith bargaining.

BA currently trades at $194.23 or 0.18% higher on the NYSE.