US Airplane Manufacturer Boeing to slash more than 12,000 jobs – with further cuts on the way

Troubled US planemaker Boeing is cutting more than 12,000 US jobs through layoffs and buyouts as the coronavirus pandemic seizes the travel industry – the aircraft maker says more cuts are coming.

SHORTLY after disclosing the job cuts, Boeing announced that it has resumed production of the grounded 737 Max jetliner, after two deadly crashes the Max jets plunged Boeing into a financial crisis months before the coronavirus squeezed global air travel to a trickle.

Boeing, one of the nation’s biggest manufacturers, said it will lay off 6,770 US employees this week, and another 5,520 workers are taking buyout offers to leave voluntarily in the coming weeks.

The company had said it would cut 10 per cent of a workforce that numbered about 160,000. A Boeing spokesperson said Wednesday’s actions represent the largest number of job cuts, but several thousand additional jobs will be eliminated in the next few months.

Boeing’s defence industry work is unaffected and remains strong said a spokesman.