Boeing

Boeing is planning to cut jobs at its commercial jet unit to reduce costs and compete with its rivals.

In a webcast to all its employees, Boeing revealed its plan to cut jobs without mentioning specific details on the number and time of the cut, reports Seattle Times.

Employees present at the webcast stated that Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) CEO Ray Conner mentioned this year the company may make a decision on whether to develop a new midsize jet in response to Airbus’s achievement in sales of the A321neo variants.

Boeing spokesman Doug Alder said: "We will start reducing employment levels beginning with executives and managers first.

"We will also use attrition and voluntary layoffs. As a last resort, involuntary layoffs may be necessary.

"The overall employment impact will depend on how effectively we bring down costs as a whole."

"The overall employment impact will depend on how effectively we bring down costs as a whole."

Boeing’s Everett, Washington, US-based site is expected to take more job cuts than the Renton site. In January, the company announced a cut in the production of 747 and 777 aircraft at Everett.

At the beginning of 2016, Boeing employed 79,238 people in Washington. Reuters noted that Boeing already cut 4,000 jobs in Washington.

According to a BBC report, Boeing announced its plan to cut 300 jobs in Australia in 2014.

Boeing said ‘this was always our intention when the company’s aircraft programmes stabilised at full production rates’ and the job losses were a ‘natural part of the manufacturing cycle.’


Image: Boeing plans to cut jobs. Photo: courtesy of Boeing.