Airplane manufacturer Boeing is preparing to significantly slash its workforce amid a strike and the company’s aircraft safety issues.
The company is planning to cut ten percent of its workforce — approximately 17,000 people, CNBC reported on Friday.
The move comes “as the company’s losses mount and a machinist strike that has idled its aircraft factories enters its fifth week,” the article notes, adding Boeing is also delaying the launch of its 777X wide-body plane until 2026.
CEO Kelly Ortberg is more than two months into his tenure and has been tasked with helping the company regain stability following significant issues with safety and manufacturing.
One example of a safety issue was when a Boeing plane carrying 174 passengers lost a wheel in midair after taking off from Los Angeles International Airport in July, according to Breitbart News, noting that it was the second such incident this year.
Another incident happened in May when a Boeing plane made an emergency landing in Indonesia due to an engine fire. There were 468 passengers on board the jet, per Breitbart News.
The CNBC report continued:
Boeing expects to report a loss of $9.97 a share in the third quarter, the company said in a surprise release Friday. It expects to report a pretax charge of $3 billion in the commercial airplane unit and $2 billion for its defense business.
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The machinist strike is yet another challenge for Ortberg. Credit ratings agencies have warned the company is at risk of losing its investment-grade rating, and Boeing has been burning through cash in what company leaders hoped would be a turnaround year.
UPI reported on Wednesday that negotiations between Boeing and its union “broke down.”
“The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said it was Boeing that was refusing to budge on a range of issues from wages, retirement plans, vacation and sick leave,” the article said.