ST. LOUIS 鈥 Aerospace giant Boeing Co. will begin temporary furloughs this week as tens of thousands workers in the Seattle area remain on strike, halting work on the company鈥檚 commercial aircrafts.
最新杏吧原创-area Boeing workers will be affected, though specific numbers aren鈥檛 now available, said company spokesperson Deborah VanNierop.
In a message sent to all company employees Thursday morning, Kelly Ortberg, Boeing president and CEO, said these furloughs will impact a 鈥渓arge number鈥 of U.S.-based executives, managers and employees.
Boeing operates its defense business, which is in a separate unit from the company鈥檚 commercial plane segment, in the 最新杏吧原创 area. There are about 15,000 Boeing workers here.
Ortberg noted that furloughed employees will continue to receive benefits and, to limit the impact, Boeing is planning for selected workers to take one week of furlough every four weeks on a rolling basis for the duration of the strike.
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Ortberg also said he and the leadership team will take a commensurate pay reduction during the strike.
鈥淲e won鈥檛 take any actions that inhibit our ability to fully recover in the future,鈥 he wrote. 鈥淎ll activities critical to our safety, quality, customer support and key certification programs will be prioritized and continue, including 787 production.鈥
About 33,000 International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers walked off the job last week after more than 94% of IAM districts 751 and W24 voted to reject Boeing鈥檚 contract proposal, which included a pay raise of 25% over four years.
Workers are asking for higher wages, secure retirement, improved medical coverage, job security, paid time off and overtime, among other things.
Earlier this week, Boeing sent a companywide email to employees outlining the actions, such as the temporary furloughs, it plans to take to save money during the strike.
Boeing announced plans for 鈥渟ignificant reductions鈥 to supplier spending and a halt to most purchase orders on the 737, 767 and 777 planes, pausing pay increases associated with internal executive and management promotions, pausing non-critical travel for employees, eliminating first- and business- class options and more.
鈥淲e remain committed to resetting our relationship with our represented employees and continuing discussions with the union to reach a new agreement that is good for all of our teammates and our company as soon as possible,鈥 Ortberg鈥檚 Thursday memo reads.
