BERKELEY — Hundreds of Boeing workers rallied outside the company’s executive offices Monday as they kicked off the second week of their strike against the aerospace giant.
Boeing said Monday all of its St. Louis sites remain open, despite the strike. And both sides appeared to be digging in, for now, with no additional negotiations scheduled as of Monday.
“Our non-striking workforce continues to support our customers,†Deborah VanNierop, spokesperson for Boeing, said in a statement.
She said work continues on Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) as well as testing for the MQ-25 refueling drone and the T-7 Red Hawk.
Striking Boeing aerospace workers with the IAMAW (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers) Dist. 837 remain on the picket line on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, as the impasse enters its second week.
VanNierop said the company’s previous offer to the union remains on the table, except for a $5,000 ratification bonus that required workers to approve the contract offer by Aug. 3.
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The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 represents 3,200 of Boeing’s roughly 16,000 St. Louis-area workers.
The unionized workers are pushing for higher pay, better benefits and a faster path to top-of-scale pay.
Boeing has proposed a 20% general wage increase over four years, but senior employees who have already reached the top of the pay scale would see some lump sum payments instead of increases to their rate of pay.
Boeing workers in Washington state last year won a 38% pay increase over four years.
VanNierop said the deal in Washington was “unique to the specific market conditions and bargaining history there,†saying it wasn’t an apples-to-apples comparison.
She said the last St. Louis negotiation was in 2022, when a 14% increase over three years was approved.
But London Brown, 25, an electrician for Boeing, said his biggest concern with the rejected contract offers was the general wage increase.
“It was not enough,†he said, compared to the Seattle contract.
Brown also pointed out that the bargaining unit in Seattle had 30,000 people.
Boeing employees and union member Wes Rader, left, and Geff Eimer stand on the picket line as the the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers continue their strike against Boeing outside the company’s Berkeley headquarters on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025. The machinists went on strike Aug. 4, after union members rejected the company’s second contract offer.
“They can afford to pay us,†he said.
Boeing is also proposing increased pension benefits for eligible employees, and to maintain the company’s “top-ranked†401(k) plan.
But only a fraction of current Boeing workers have a pension, Michael Bergen, a 47-year veteran of Boeing and its predecessor, McDonnell Douglas, said Monday.
Employers have generally moved away from pensions and toward 401(k) plans, which shift more responsibility to employees to fund their own retirements.
Boeing employees are calling for better 401(k) benefits as part of the current strike.
Bergen, 65, of Bridgeton, said the younger employees were “sticking to their guns.â€
“We’ve had a lot of turnover,†he said. “So there’s a lot of young people and they’re bound and determined to get what they want.â€
