Engineers and technical workers, however, saw it as a slap in the face, one that was consistent with a dismissive attitude toward employees that had been building for years. Now its orientation is toward making shareholders and Wall Street happy. It's not as poignant as if they're a family member. Boeing has, in fact, been laying off workers by the tens of thousands, hemorrhaging 34,000 jobs nationwide since the end of '98. Layoffs, of course, are nothing new to Boeing, given its boom and bust cycles.
Workers feel now, though, that management is approaching the matter more ruthlessly.
He points to the disastrous production problems a few years back that led to embarrassing and costly delays on orders, coinciding with Boeing's first financial loss in 1997. On top of all that, Conte says, the company has had to deal with fierce competition from Airbus and the integration of thousands of new employees due to its mergers with Rockwell Aerospace and McDonnell Douglas. Critically, McDonnell Douglas gave Boeing its new president. Stonecipher has been an unapologetic proponent of cost-cutting and cultural change. Wall Street has applauded.