Boeing, Union Head Back to Negotiating Table. The Stock Is Down.

Coming into Monday trading, Boeing’s stock was up 30% year to date. Investors have been encouraged by higher commercial jet production and deliveries. (Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images)

Boeing and representatives from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 837 planned to meet again on Monday, trying to resolve a strike affecting Boeing’s defense business that began on Aug. 4.

“We look forward to further conversations with the union on Aug. 25 and finding a path forward to end the strike and bring our team back to work,” read an update on Boeing’s website.

IAM 837 workers making F-15 and F-18 fighter jets rejected an offer that among other things, included 40% potential average wage growth over the life of the contract, according to Boeing. The average annual wage could have risen to $102,600 from $75,000. The contract ratification bonus was $5,000.

Overall, Boeing’s defense unit employs more than 18,000 workers in total. Sales in 2024 totaled almost $24 billion, up from $23 billion in 2018. But the operating loss this past year was about $5.4 billion, compared with a $1.6 billion profit in 2018. Money-losing fixed-price contracts have been weighing on results.

A resolution of the strike would be good for Boeing and labor. Investors, however, haven’t seemed all that concerned by the work stoppage yet.

Shares of the commercial jet maker dropped 1.2%, closing at $226.87, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4% and 0.8%, respectively.

Coming into Monday trading, Boeing stock was down a few dollars a share since the union rejected the offer and authorized a strike. It has risen a few dollars since the strike began on Aug. 4.

That is a different investor reaction than to the seven-week strike, affecting commercial jet production in Washington state, that wrapped up in November. Boeing stock, at roughly $160 when the strike started, was below $140 shortly after the strike’s resolution.

The commercial aerospace strike was simply larger, affecting Boeing’s main business—selling 737 MAX, 777, and 787 jets to airlines around the world. About 33,000 workers walked off the job in September. Local 837 represents about 3,200 Boeing workers.

What’s more, Boeing’s commercial jet business has struggled for years, and investors have been waiting for a turnaround. Boeing delivered more than 800 commercial airliners in 2018, generating about $61 billion in sales and $8 billion in operating income. Boeing delivered about 350 jets in 2024, generating about $23 billion in sales and an operating loss of about $8 billion.

Coming into Monday trading, Boeing’s stock was up 30% this year. Investors have been encouraged by higher commercial jet production and deliveries. Through July, Boeing delivered 328 planes in 2025, up from 218 over the same span of 2024.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com