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Employees of the aircraft manufacturer in the northwestern US state of Washington fear for the future. According to the leader of the engineers union, Ray Goforth, it is a feeling of frustration and insecurity that characterizes the workers.
The company suffered a serious setback as a result of the two plane crashes with the 737 Max in 2018 and 2019. Then the pandemic struck, and this year the company’s debt has piled up as cash runs out.
Production had to be significantly reduced and about 13,000 jobs were lost at the company’s Everett, Washington plant.
As of March next year, assembly of the 787 aircraft will also not take place at Everett. Everything is moved to the company’s facilities in South Carolina.
Airbus is growing
Five years ago, the market for midsize airliners was roughly evenly split between Boeing and its European rival Airbus. Airbus has now secured a 60 percent stake.
Goforth claims the whole talk about Boeing’s departure from Everett is overblown. At the same time, he believes that management should reassure people in the region that a career at Boeing is still possible.
However, no one from the company’s top management has wanted to request a New Years interview this year, and aviation experts believe that even more jobs are likely to disappear in the future.
– Must develop new aircraft
The bad news is that there are no good working conditions in the next few years, says Ron Epstein, an aviation industry analyst at Bank of America.
An expert panel recently concluded that Boeing will only be able to regain its former greatness if the company launches a new aircraft model in 2023.
But with mounting debt and less cash, investments in developing a new model seem far off.
However, former CEO of competitor Airbus, John Leahy, believes Boeing will have to make plans for an entirely new aircraft if the company is to maintain its market position.
– They should not talk about it, they should work with it, he says.
Video: The plane that changed the world: the incredible story of the Boeing 747
