Tucson labor union negotiates for higher pay in new Raytheon contract

Members of a Tucson labor union representing about 2,200 Raytheon workers voted overwhelmingly Sunday to ratify a new contract with the defense contracting giant.

IAMAW Local 933, a local chapter of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, voted 94% in favor to ratify a new contract with Raytheon after weeks of negotiations with the company.

The new five-year agreement includes higher wages for hourly employees, plus better benefits and expanded opportunities to advance within the company, union representatives said.

“Meeting the demand for these defense systems starts with taking care of the workers who build them,” said Brian Bryant, head of IAM International, in a news release. “Local 933 members know their work, they know their worth and they stood together. This agreement delivers gains they can be proud of and helps secure the skilled workforce this industry needs.”

Local Raytheon workers, who last agreed to a contract in 2023, said improved wages were their first priority.

The new work agreement includes 24 percent average compounded raises over the life of the contract, plus thousands of dollars in bonuses and 401k matches.

Local 933 also bargained for improvements to their vacation and paid time off schedules, more flexible options for the work week and and more education and training opportunities.

RTX Corporation, Raytheon’s parent company, confirmed the new contract went into effect on Monday.

“For over 70 years, Raytheon has been a cornerstone of the Tucson community, and this outcome reaffirms our commitment to both the region and to our employees,” the company said in a statement to the Tucson Sentinel.

Raytheon Missiles & Defense has its headquarters in Tucson, a move the company made in 2020 when merging with United Technologies to form the second-largest aerospace and defense contractor in the world.

The company has about 15,000 total employees in Tucson.

Raytheon currently holds numerous multibillion-dollar contracts with defense agencies throughout the world, supplying them with missiles, interceptors, “smart” weapons, sensors and radars and “space-based” systems, which are designed and built at sites throughout the U.S.

The U.S. Department of Defense, under its Arsenal of Freedom Initiative, in August contracted for $22.9 billion to speed the production of more than 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles for the U.S. Navy. At least some of those are being built by Raytheon in Tucson.

The department and Raytheon in September entered a seven-year sole-source contract, meaning Raytheon did not have to compete with another company, for the production of nearly 14,000 Advanced-Medium-Range Air-to-Air missiles – also called AMRAAMs – in Tucson. The U.S. plans to spend up to $20.7 billion to build the missiles.

The Defense Department, in October awarded Raytheon another contract, capped at $6.3 billion, to build Standard Missile-3 Block IB interceptors designed to destroy low and mid-range ballistic missiles within the next five-years The interceptors will be built in Tucson and in Huntsville, Ala.

The U.S. Air Force also recently awarded an up-to-$8 billion contract, effective for 10 years, to build nuclear command terminals in Massachusetts and Florida.

The Tucson facility develops and manufactures a variety of other missiles, including a new nuclear cruise missile, the Standard Missile-2, SM-3 and SM-6 interceptor.

With $16 million in incentives from Pima County for the contractor, Raytheon has been in the process of adding about 2,000 jobs here in recent years. The county and Pima Association of Governments invested about $33 million in the company’s expansion here, purchasing land for a buffer zone and constructing a new roadway near the factory, south of Tucson International Airport.

When Local 933 members ratified their 2023 contract, they said, they didn’t realize the cost of living would rise so quickly in Tucson over the next three years.

“We take pride in our work. We build systems that keep this nation secure,” said Ashley Atwood, a Local 933 member who works within Raytheon’s Career Enrichment Program. “We want a contract that recognizes our skills and contributions.”

Atwood was one of dozens who gathered Wednesday to demonstrate outside of the DoubleTree by Hilton in Downtown Tucson where negotiations between the union and Raytheon representatives were taking place inside.

Paul Shepherd, who represents IAM at the national level and acted as one of the chief negotiators throughout the process, said the negotiations between IAM locals and companies are always “give and take.”

But, he noted at the Wednesday rally, both parties were “down to the wire” on bargaining time, with the previous contract set to expire on Sunday.

Shepherd said Local 933 previously voted 98% in favor of authorizing a strike if a mutually beneficial deal couldn’t be made.

Those who attended the Wednesday rally ranged from relatively new employees to those who have worked at Raytheon for decades, Atwood noted.

And ultimately, she said, everyone there was invested in Raytheon’s success.
“We love our jobs, and we take pride in what we do every day,” she said.

Local 933 has represented Raytheon workers for nearly 75 years, making it one of Tucson’s oldest labor unions. It started as a union for workers at the Hughes Aircraft Company, which was acquired by Raytheon in the 1990s.

Local 933 last went on strike in the 1970s, according to its website.

Daniel Butierez Sr., the Republican candidate running for Congress against Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva, also attended the rally.

He said he would support workers if they went on strike.

“I completely support industries like Raytheon,” he said. “But they need to support their employees.”

Butierez, who went on to say he was “not very political” until running against Grijalva in the 2025 special election for Congressional District 7, said he comes from a family of union members.

That’s part of why he believes there’s room throughout the political spectrum to support workers’ interests.

“I’m out here because I am for the people,” he said.