Sept 25 (Reuters) - Boeing ( BA ) and its largest union

will resume contract talks on Friday in a bid to end a strike

that has throttled plane production and hammered the finances of

the aerospace giant, the union and company said on Wednesday.

More than 32,000 Boeing ( BA ) workers in the Seattle area and

Portland, Oregon, walked off the job on Sept. 13 in the union's

first strike since 2008, halting production of airplane models

including Boeing's ( BA ) best-selling 737 MAX.

Negotiators from Boeing ( BA ) and the International

Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) will meet

with federal mediators in a bid to break the deadlock, after two

days of previous talks collapsed a week ago.

"The Union is ready for this opportunity to bring

forward the issues that members have identified as critical to

reaching an agreement," IAM said in a statement.

"We know that the only way to resolve this strike is

through negotiations."

Boeing ( BA ) confirmed the talks would continue on Friday but

had no further comment.

Hours before the strike started, nearly 95% of workers

at the IAM rejected Boeing's ( BA ) initial offer of a 25% pay rise

over four years, arguing it did not make up for more than a

decade of stagnant wage increases that had lagged inflation.

Boeing ( BA ) made an improved offer on Monday it described as its

"best and final", which would give workers a 30% raise over four

years and restored a performance bonus. The union said a survey

of its members found that was not enough and has declined to put

it to a formal vote.

"The company's latest offer didn't meet the needs of our

members. That message came through loud and clear in our latest

survey," IAM's statement said.

The union has been seeking a 40% pay rise and the

restoration of a defined-benefit pension that was taken away in

the contract a decade ago.