in a message For employees, Boeing Chairman and CEO Kelly Ortberg has announced that the company is reducing the size of its total workforce by 10 percent. That means Boeing will cut approximately 17,000 jobs, including executives and managers, in the coming months. Ortberg, who took the helm in August, explained that the company has to “make structural changes” to ensure it can “remain competitive” and deliver for its customers in the long term.
Ortberg announced the upcoming layoffs amid a machinists' strike that had paralyzed production at most Boeing plants, including those making its best-selling plane, the 737 Max. Around 33,000 union machinists are involved in the strike that has lasted since mid-September. As AP As he explains, this has had a big impact on Boeing's pockets, as he is paid half of what a plane costs after delivering a customer's order.
In addition to the layoffs, Ortberg announced that Boeing will delay development of its 777X aircraft due to challenges it has faced in development, along with the ongoing work stoppage. It now plans to deliver the new wide-body aircraft in 2026 instead of 2025.
Boeing began 2024 by having to ground some 737 Max 9 planes after an Alaska Airlines door plug exploded while mid-flight. While no injuries were reported, the Boeing plane had only been in service since November last year. In July, the company agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government following two deadly crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. Boeing had also suffered hundreds of millions in losses as a result of the delayed return of Starliner from the International Space Station. The company's first crewed flight was only supposed to last a few days, but hardware issues prevented the original schedule from being met. Ultimately, the Starliner returned to Earth months later, without the astronauts it originally flew to the space station with. Its crew will return home in a SpaceX Dragon capsule in February next year.
