Boeing engineers and technicians ratify four-year contract with 32% average pay increase

The ratification

SPEEA, the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace and Boeing's largest white-collar union, said its professional unit approved the deal by 67.6%, with 7,895 votes for and 3,780 against. The technical unit, with about 4,000 analysts, technicians, planners and specialists, backed it by 53.5%, with 2,061 votes for and 1,793 against. Boeing said it was "pleased with the outcome of the vote." Shares rose 3.4% on Thursday after the results were announced, and a strike would have marked Boeing's third major labor disruption in three years, Livemint reported.

In August, the same members rejected Boeing's first offer by 64% in the professional unit and 72% in the technical unit, and authorized strike action by 88% and 90%, the World Socialist Web Site reported. The negotiating team had endorsed that offer. The old contract expired on 6 October.

What is in the deal

Livemint reported that the contract provides an average pay increase of 32% over four years and a 10% raise at ratification. The World Socialist Web Site reported that the figure is up from 26.5% in the first offer, that a 4% raise follows in March 2027, and that wage pools rise 6% in each of the next three years, with 4% guaranteed to all workers and 2% distributed selectively by management. Because that 2% is discretionary, the 32% figure is an average, not a guaranteed raise for every worker. A wage pool sets the total amount available for raises across a group of employees rather than guaranteeing each worker the full stated percentage.

The SPEEA negotiation team said workers secured "many victories that some people thought were completely out of reach when this negotiation cycle started," Livemint reported. The contract leaves Boeing broad authority over the use of non-Boeing labor and movement of work, with Article 9 unchanged, and there was no change from the first offer on retirement or medical benefits, the World Socialist Web Site reported. The mandatory overtime cap falls to 96 hours a quarter for professional workers and 112 for technical workers, from 144. The second offer did not fundamentally alter most other provisions.

Certification risk

The Wall Street Journal reported that engineers in the bargaining unit are responsible for the certification paperwork that new aircraft must clear before entering service, while technicians keep factory machinery running and address problems that could stall production. A walkout could have slowed both, and Boeing is trying to raise output of its fast-selling jets and win approval for the 737 Max 10 and 777X, which are years behind schedule, Yahoo Finance reported. CEO Kelly Ortberg warned last month that a strike could have effectively stalled certification of the delayed 777-9 and significantly hampered production capacity for the 737 family, and said 777-9 testing "may" slip into 2027 anyway, though Boeing still expects some deliveries next year, Livemint reported.

Context

In 2024, 33,000 machinists struck for 53 days, halting most commercial-aircraft production in the Pacific Northwest, FlightGlobal reported. In 2025, 3,200 St. Louis-area defense workers struck for 15 weeks before accepting a fifth offer on a 68% to 32% vote, St. Louis Public Radio reported, in the sixth vote overall since the strike began on 4 August. SPEEA members last went on strike in 2000, Livemint reported.