The 2,500 submarine designers of Connecticut-based Electric Boat, the U.S. Navy's nuclear submarine manufacturer, announced on Friday that if a labor agreement cannot be reached by May 18, they will start a strike at midnight.
These engineers, who are affiliated with the "American Society of Marine Cartographers-United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 571", are directly responsible for the design of the U.S. Navy's nuclear submarine fleet, and their strike may impact the update plan of the U.S. undersea strategic force.
The day before the strike, the U.S. Navy had just awarded Electric Boat's parent company General Dynamics a $12.4 billion contract to build two "Virginia-class" nuclear submarines, which included workers' wage increases.
Electric Boat workers are demanding higher pay increases amid high inflation. The current deal proposes an undisclosed increase, but the UAW previously secured a 25% three-year raise in the auto industry.
Electric Boat is the only nuclear submarine manufacturer in the U.S. Navy (the other is Newport News Shipyard). It is currently responsible for the construction of Columbia-class strategic nuclear submarines (each costing 9 billion US dollars) and Virginia Block V attack nuclear submarines (including new missile bays).
The design team's strike may lead to delays in key nodes and affect the United States' plan to build 66 nuclear attack submarines by 2030.
Bradley Martin, a defense analyst at the Rand Corporation, said: "Nuclear submarine design is the 'most irreplaceable' military industry link. Even if the strike lasts only a week, it may increase the cost of each submarine by tens of millions of dollars."
The strike may test the United States' ability to maintain a stable defense industrial base in an era of great power competition.