On Thursday, Boeing’s union voted to reject a last-minute deal with the company, setting up a strike that couldn’t come at a worse time for the aerospace company.
Boeing is already in a tough position as it deals with delivery delays and quality defects. Whatever the contract eventually spells out, the jump in production costs will further challenge the company’s leadership and put its new CEO Kelly Ortberg to the test.
In a new story for Fortune, I outline how the company might respond, what the union is demanding, and why.