Boeing has laid off 70 C-17 production workers in a cost-cutting move it says was needed to provide maximum “value” to customers, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
Workers were given pink slips Feb. 1 and are expected to be out the door by April 3. Boeing, which had been seeking to cut 95 positions total, said about 25 additional workers retired or were transferred to other posts.
Spokesman Rick Sanford said the company tried unsuccessfully in recent months to reduce its C-17 workforce through attrition.
“Unfortunately, expected attrition rates are down due to economic conditions,” Boeing said in a statement. “In our review of alternatives, every available option was considered. However, in order to size our business to the current economic environment, we must lay off employees.”
Layoffs come as Boeing attempts to cut production costs on the C-17, which sells for about $240 million.
Production of the hulking cargo plane, built in Long Beach by a team of about 5,500 blue and white-collar workers, is scheduled to end in August 2009 unless more orders are made soon.
The heavy-duty jet, designed to take off and land on short runways, is used extensively to support U.S., British and Australian troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
