Union workers strike at Pratt & Whitney plant where F-35 engine is made
Pratt & Whitney said in a statement that it has “contingency plans in place to maintain operations and meet our customer commitments” and has no “immediate” plans to resume negotiations with the union.
An Air Force F-35 Lightning II Demonstration Team aircraft takes off from Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, May 25, 2021. The demo team visited the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex’s Heavy Maintenance Center to thank the men and women for their work on sustaining the F135 engine, which powers the F-35A. (U.S. Air Force photo by Paul Shirk)
WASHINGTON — About 3,000 union workers for Pratt & Whitney in Connecticut have gone on strike, including machinists involved in the manufacture of the F-35’s engine, but the company says it has “contingency plans in place to maintain operations.”
On Sunday, members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) voted to reject a contract offer from Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of RTX, and go on strike. Members of the IAM Locals 700 and 1746 started picketing Monday at production facilities in East Hartford and Middletown, Conn.
Pratt & Whitney said in a statement that it has “contingency plans in place to maintain operations and meet our customer commitments” and has no “immediate” plans to resume negotiations with the union.
“Pratt & Whitney’s offer competitively compensates our workforce while ensuring P&W can grow in an increasingly competitive marketplace, creating ongoing economic opportunity in the state of Connecticut,” the company stated. “Our message to union leaders throughout this thoughtful process has been simple: higher pay, better retirement savings, more days off and more flexibility. Our local workforce is among the highest compensated in the region and the industry — our offer built on that foundation.”
Pratt & Whitney declined further comment on what contingency plans it has in place and whether production of the F135 or its other military engines have slowed as a result of the strike. However, union workers told The Hartford Courant that the company has brought in contract workers to replace union labor, such as running the East Hartford facility’s powerhouse.
Aside from the F135, the company builds F100s for the F-15 and F-16, F117s used in the C-17 Globemaster III, and F119s used to power the F-22 Raptor at its East Hartford plant.
In a statement, IAM stated that Pratt & Whitney’s proposed contract did not offer an adequate compensation package in terms of wages and retirement benefits, and did not satisfy concerns with job security.
“Pratt and Whitney is a powerhouse in military and commercial aerospace products because our membership makes it so,” IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan said in a statement. “This offer does not address the membership concerns, and the membership made their decision — we will continue to fight for a fair contract.”
While Lockheed Martin met its delivery goal of 110 F-35s in 2024, deliveries of the F135 engine to Lockheed Martin have historically lagged their scheduled due date. In 2023, Pratt & Whitney did not deliver any F135 engines on time, with schedules slipping from the one-month average delay seen in 2022 to about two months, the Government Accountability Office said in a May 2024 report. (Pratt & Whitney delivers F135s to Lockheed ahead of need, with the program having an inventory buffer of about 40 engines in 2023, the GAO stated.)
It is unclear whether a prolonged strike could exacerbate those timelines or put pressure on Lockheed’s production goal of 156 F-35s this year. The F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) deferred questions about the strike’s impact on engine deliveries to Pratt & Whitney. F-35 prime contractor Lockheed Martin deferred questions to the JPO.
JJ Gertler, a senior analyst with the Teal Group, noted that even if F135 production remains ongoing that “doesn’t mean it continues at the same pace as before,” he said in an email to Breaking Defense.
Home to Pratt & Whitney, General Dynamics Electric Boat and Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky helicopter unit, Connecticut is a blue-state hub of defense manufacturing. Several prominent Connecticut lawmakers with close ties to the defense world voiced their support for IAM workers in the wake of the strike.
“These highly skilled workers help power one of Connecticut’s most critical industries,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, who serves as the top Democrat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee, in a post this morning on the social media site X. “I’m hopeful an agreement can be reached that reflects the immense value these workers bring.”
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he was “proud” to picket with union members on Monday.
“They’re among America’s most skilled & dedicated workers, making some of America’s most advanced aircraft engines & other aerospace defense products. They deserve Pratt’s respect—basic fairness,” he said in a post on X on Monday.
Rep. Joe Courtney, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services seapower and projection forces committee, said that the strike should “turbocharge” efforts from Pratt & Whitney to deliver an improved offer to its workforce.
“This is the only viable path that is best for industry and our nation at a critical moment for our economy and national security,” he said in a Monday evening post on X.
