Boeing will cut about 5% of its commercial plane workforce as it slows the pace of increasing jet production, the company said on Monday.
The jobs will be eliminated through a mix of layoffs and attrition. A message to employees from Boeing commercial chief Stephanie Pope said the slower ramp-up would give factories and supply chain partners additional time to achieve stability.
“Adjusting our production schedules and reducing aircraft output puts us in an overstaffed position,” Pope said.
She praised the team for improved operations, reflected in US certifications this year of the 737 Max 7 and 737 Max 10. “While we have made substantial progress, we have not yet fully recovered,” she said. Pope promised to treat employees with “dignity and respect” as the company moves ahead with layoff notifications beginning in December.
In a conference call in late October, Boeing executives said the company would no longer meet its target for 2026 deliveries. They also said the timeframe for lifting 737 Max production to 52 from 47 had been pushed back to the second half of 2027.
Investors have viewed raising 737 Max output as central to revenue and profit growth after a long period of financial losses caused by safety problems, including two deadly Max crashes in 2018 and 2019.
Chief executive Kelly Ortberg said in October: “We’re making progress, but we still have more work to do, and I’m expecting it’ll take us into next year to get fully stable at this rate.” He cited the need for greater predictability in wing production and in the production of fuselages at the company’s Kansas operation.
Source: The Guardian
