Talks between Boeing and its main manufacturing union have broken down and no new meetings are planned as the financially damaging strike enters its fourth week.
The company announced this Tuesday that it was withdrawing its salary offer to some 33,000 workers at the American factory, alleging that the union had not seriously considered its proposals after two days of talks.
The impasse shows no signs of resolution, said a person briefed on the talks. S&P analysts estimate the strike will cost Boeing about $1 billion a month. “Unfortunately, the union did not seriously consider our proposals,” Stephanie Pope, head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said in a memo to employees, calling the union’s demands “non-negotiable.”
“At this moment it makes no sense to continue negotiating,” he added.
The breakup exacerbates the financial and production problems of Boeing, one of the world’s two largest commercial aircraft manufacturers. The company has been burning cash in 2024 as it struggles to recover from the January explosion of a mid-flight panel on a new plane, which exposed weak safety protocols and led U.S. regulators to curb its production. . Boeing replaced its chief executive, Dave Calhoun, with Kelly Ortberg, who began work in August in hopes of reaching a labor agreement and improving the company’s reputation with customers and regulators. At the moment, none of that has happened. Boeing is studying options to raise billions of dollars to shore up its balance sheet. Reuters has reported that the company is considering selling shares and similar securities as its prized investment-grade credit rating is in jeopardy.
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