By Allison Lampert and Dan Catchpole
(Reuters) -A nearly week-long strike by around 3,000 U.S. Pratt & Whitney workers to keep jet engine work in Connecticut is the latest source of uncertainty in an aerospace supply chain already struggling to meet global demand for new airliners.
Jeff Santini, lead negotiator for the workers, told Reuters on Friday that the stoppage largely hinges on securing a commitment to keep certain Pratt work for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighters in the U.S. state.
“Job security is number one right now,” Santini told Reuters, after joining federal lawmakers from Connecticut and workers on a picket line.
On Sunday, members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) rejected the company’s latest offer.
In addition to the F-35, one of the most widely used fighters in the world, the RTX subsidiary also makes geared turbofan (GTF) engines for European planemaker Airbus’ best-selling A320 family of jets.
Analysts warn that a lengthy strike would further strain production. Pratt has struggled with output problems in recent years and is searching for potentially flawed components in its GTF engines that have grounded hundreds of planes in recent months.
RTX has said the two sites in Connecticut remain open despite the strike and the company has a contingency plan, without elaborating. Pratt is telling suppliers to continue shipping parts as usual, one of them said.
RTX said on Friday it is committed to Connecticut after investing more than $550 million in the state since 2019.
RTX said it offered to raise wages by 10.5% over three years, with additional cost of living and job progression increases and a $5,000 signing bonus.
Santini said the wage increase fails to keep up with inflation, but he has not made the union’s demands public.
The strike’s duration is up to Pratt, IAM International President Brian Bryant said. “They are the ones who can very easily get back to the table.”
“It’s too early to tell if the strike will impact us,” an Airbus spokesperson said by email, adding it is in close contact with Pratt and RTX.
Lockheed Martin declined to comment on Pratt work for the F-35, which is produced at a rate of 156 fighters a year.
AeroDynamic Advisory Managing Director Richard Aboulafia said fallout might be limited with a short strike.
“If management is smart, the strike lasts a few days,” Aboulafia added. “If not, it lasts for months.”
(Reporting by Dan Catchpole in Seattle and Allison Lampert in Montreal; Editing by Richard Chang)
