Updated Oct 11, 2024 - Business

Embattled Boeing to slash 10% of workforce in latest blow

Sareen Habeshian

Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are assembled at the Boeing Renton Factory in Renton, Washington, on June 25, 2024. At its plane factory near Seattle, Boeing has increased employee training, appointed mentors for new recruits, brought back retirees as coaches and stepped up tracking of performance metrics. — A Boeing 737 MAX aircraft at the Boeing Renton Factory in Renton, Washington, on June 25. Photo: Jennifer Buchanan / pool / AFP via Getty Images

Boeing is cutting 10% of its workforce — nearly 17,000 workers — as it restructures to reduce costs, the company's new CEO announced Friday.

The big picture: The embattled aerospace titan has been facing a crippling strike, while it tries to ramp up production and improve its reputation following a series of quality and safety issues.

What they're saying: "Our business is in a difficult position, and it is hard to overstate the challenges we face together," CEO Kelly Ortberg, who assumed the position in August, said in a memo to employees.

"Beyond navigating our current environment, restoring our company requires tough decisions and we will have to make structural changes to ensure we can stay competitive and deliver for our customers over the long term," he added.

Zoom in: In the coming months, the company will reduce the size of its 170,000-person workforce, cutting executives, managers and employees, per the memo.

Boeing will also delay deliveries of its 777X, a large jet originally slated to be ready in 2020, to 2026.
The company will stop production of its 767 Freighters in 2027 after completing outstanding orders.

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Editor's note: This story has been updated with more details on the planned cuts.

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Embattled Boeing to slash 10% of workforce in latest blow

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