Boeing extends production shutdown instead of re-opening

Boeing says its temporary shutdown of airplane factories in the Puget Sound region now extends to South Carolina.

Beginning on Wednesday, April 8 the company will not be making commercial airplanes for the foreseeable future.

The halt began two weeks ago with the temporary production shutdown of Boeing's Everett plant amid Washington's state's stay-at-home order.

The company had said it would reopen that plant this week, but is now extending that shutdown and also closing its South Carolina 787 factory, the only commercial airplane factory outside the Puget Sound region.

The extension of the shutdown means 30,000 Puget Sound area production workers will soon be filing for unemployment, at a time when the state's system is under an unprecedented load.

Employment Security Commissioner Suzi LeVine said the unemployment system can handle more applicants. However, she said it’s important that Boeing workers succeed at applying online.

“So we are looking at co-ordinating with Boeing to help them help their employees be best prepared, especially pre-answering any Boeing-specific circumstances and questions,” she said.

LeVine said people who only use the online system can receive a check in a week. However if workers become entangled in problems, such as differences between the way the employer and the state record an individual's work hours, that can force workers toward overloaded call centers.

That's why, LeVine said, it's important that employers work with the state to iron out any problems in advance of layoffs or furloughs.

Boeing is no longer saying when it expects to re-start commercial airplane production. About 70,000 people in Washington state work for Boeing.

Employees who are able to work from home continue to do so. The company also says workers who seek state help will still receive Boeing health benefits.