Boeing engineers at the Everett widebody plant who walk off the job in October will have to prove they're looking for other work to collect unemployment benefits, after a federal ruling forced Washington state to scrap a seven-month-old waiver.

The U.S. Department of Labor told Washington's Employment Security Department that its policy of exempting striking workers from job-search requirements violates federal law. The state filed an emergency rule Friday, Aug. 21, effective immediately, removing striking workers from the "attached to an employer" classification that had shielded them from the requirement since Jan. 1.

The rule change landed the same day roughly 17,000 members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace voted to reject Boeing's four-year contract offer and authorize a strike. The Professional Unit, nearly 13,000 engineers and scientists, voted 64.3% against the deal; the Technical Unit, more than 4,000 analysts and technicians, voted 71.9% no. Strike authorization passed with 87.8% support in the Professional Unit and 89.7% in the Technical Unit. Current contracts expire Oct. 6, making Oct. 7 the earliest a walkout could begin.

Starting Monday, Aug. 24, any striking worker filing a new unemployment claim must complete three job-search activities per week, keep a written log of those efforts and register with a WorkSource employment center. The ESD can deny benefits if the log is missing or incomplete, or if the worker is not making a genuine attempt to find a job.

Under the 2025 law (SB 5041), striking workers can receive up to six weeks of unemployment benefits, available after the second Sunday following a strike plus a one-week waiting period. Through Aug. 5, the state had paid $565,714 to 151 people across 741 weeks of claims under the program.

No further negotiations between Boeing and SPEEA were scheduled as of Friday, Aug. 21. SPEEA plans to survey members through Aug. 26 before seeking to resume bargaining. ESD will conduct a formal rulemaking process to make the emergency rule permanent.