Boeing cutting more than 12,000 jobs with layoffs, buyouts
Posted May 27, 2020 8:54 am.
Boeing is cutting more than 12,000 jobs through layoffs and buyouts as it suffers from a sharp drop in air travel due to the coronavirus pandemic, and more cuts are coming.
The company said Wednesday that it will lay off 6,770 U.S. employees this week, and another 5,520 workers are taking buyout offers to leave voluntarily in the coming weeks.
Boeing previously said it would cut 10% of a work force that numbered about 160,000. A Boeing spokesperson said Wednesday’s actions represent the largest number of job cuts, but several thousand additional jobs will be eliminated in the next few months.
The layoffs are expected to be concentrated in the Seattle area, home to Boeing’s commercial-airplanes business. The defence and space division is stable and will help blunt the impact of the decline in air travel and demand for passenger jets, the company said.
Boeing’s crisis began with two crashes of its 737 Max, which led regulators around the world to ground the jetliner last year. The company’s problems have deepened with the coronavirus, which has cut global air traffic by up to 90% and caused airlines to postpone or cancel orders and deliveries for new planes.
David Koenig, The Associated Press
