Boeing defense workers approve new contract, ending more than three months of strike

Boeing Defense workers approved a new contract Thursday that will end a more than three-month strike that delayed production at the maker of F-15 fighter jets and other programs.

Workers rejected previous offers, with their union saying the proposals did not address concerns.

The contract proposal voted on by the roughly 3,200 workers Thursday includes wage increases of 24 percent over five years as well as an upfront bonus of $6,000, up from $3,000, although it eliminates a previous Boeing proposal calling for $4,000 in subsequent payments. That would increase the average base salary from $75,000 to $109,000 over the life of the contract, Boeing said.

The mostly St. Louis-based workers, represented by District 837 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, went on strike Aug. 4, their first stoppage since 1996.

“We are proud of what our members fought for together and are ready to get back to building the world’s most advanced military aircraft,” IAM District 837 said in a statement Thursday.

Boeing’s defense unit accounted for about 30% of the company’s $65.5 billion in sales through the first nine months of 2025.

“We are pleased with the results and look forward to bringing our entire team together again on November 17 to support our customers,” Boeing said.

“The strike impacted our fighter production, so the F-15, F-18 modules as well as some of our munitions work,” CEO Kelly Ortberg said at a September 11 Morgan Stanley investor conference.

Boeing used workers not represented by the IAM during the strike for some of its products, Ortberg said last month.

Union workers will return to Boeing factories on Sunday.

Workers at the defense unit went on strike about a year after more than 32,000 unionized machinists who build commercial planes walked off the job for seven weeks after contract negotiations collapsed last year.