Boeing retaliated against its own engineers working for FAA, union says
Boeing’s white-collar union alleged Tuesday that company management retaliated against engineers overseeing design work on behalf of the Federal Aviation Administration, heightening concerns about a self-regulation regime that’s come under renewed fire since Jan. 5, when a fuselage panel blew out midair.
In 2022, as Boeing worked to integrate new avionics packages into its 777 and 787 widebody aircraft, two of its engineers insisted the company needed to reevaluate prior engineering work completed on the two aircraft. The engineering union contends Boeing managers objected to this on the grounds that it would add costs and slow production.
After the FAA backed the engineers about how the work should be performed and the dispute was settled, in mid-2023 Boeing gave both men negative performance reviews, which cuts pay raises and promotion prospects.
The two “did the right thing and stuck to their guns despite heavy pressure from Boeing, and then got hit with career-damaging performance reviews,” said Rich Plunkett, the union’s director of strategic development. “This helps show why Boeing doesn’t have a healthy safety culture.”
