Boeing to Lay Off 2,000+ Workers

Boeing announced on Friday that it will have to lay off 800 workers, which means the company will lay off 2,000-2,300 workers this year. 

While the 800 machinists had been slated to work on Boeing’s commercial aircraft, some of the other workers had to be laid off from the defense side due to Pentagon budget cuts that resulted from the sequester. 

The Seattle Times noted that the machinists had been hired to work on the 787 Dreamliner and 747-8 jumbo jet, and the news came to a shock because industry experts did not expect the layoffs as Boeing’s “jet production is expect to soar this year.”

“We always expected employment requirements would come down on these programs after we stabilized production,” Boeing spokesman Doug Alder said. “That’s what’s happening.”

The layoffs will be “applied according to seniority,” so the newest hires–younger workers who are more vulnerable in this economy–will be laid off first.