On February 9, 2000, more than 17,000 engineers and technicians from the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA) walked out of Boeing plants across the country. Organized in 1946, SPEEA is an affiliated local union of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), AFL-CIO, and this was the first major strike for the engineers' organization. After the 40-day standoff, a mediated contract was approved with significant SPEEA gains on pay increases and benefits, but tensions continued between the company and SPEEA over the next decade and Boeing outsourced much of the design for its next major plane, the 787. "No Nerds No Birds" was a popular slogan used during the strike.