Boeing to Cut 10% of Workforce Amid Challenging Year

Boeing will lay off approximately 10% of its workforce, affecting around 17,000 employees, according to President and CEO Kelly Ortberg in an email to staff. The layoffs will occur over the next few months and impact executives, managers, and other employees. Further details on how specific divisions will be affected are expected next week.

This announcement comes after a particularly tough year for Boeing. In January, the company grounded its 737 Max planes following a mid-flight incident. Boeing later accepted a guilty plea over two deadly 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019, which claimed over 300 lives. While Boeing's Starliner spacecraft successfully transported NASA astronauts to the International Space Station in June, it returned to Earth in September without astronauts due to technical issues. Additionally, more than 30,000 factory workers have been on strike since mid-September.

"As we move through this process, we will maintain our steadfast focus on safety, quality, and delivering for our customers," Ortberg said. "We know these decisions will cause difficulty for you, your families, and our team, and I sincerely wish we could avoid taking them. However, the state of our business and our future recovery require tough actions."

Ortberg also announced that the first delivery of the 777X airplane would be delayed until 2026.