Numerous workers at Skills Inc., a manufacturing company in Auburn, Washington, that builds parts for the Boeing 737 Max, have been laid off or furloughed, or had their hours cut.
Skills Inc. is a nonprofit that offers training and jobs for people with disabilities – it says about 60% of its staff of 600 have a self-identified disability.
Business Insider spoke with employees and reviewed communications from the company. Workers said the cuts were a direct result of Boeing suspending production of the troubled 737 Max.
Numerous employees at Skills Inc., a Boeing supplier in Auburn, Washington, have been laid off or furloughed, or had their hours cut, current and former employees told Business Insider. It’s the latest in the fallout from Boeing’s decision to suspend production of the troubled 737 Max airplane.
Skills, an aerospace manufacturer and supplier, is among about 600 companies that build components for the Boeing 737 Max. Unlike similar companies, however, Skills is a nonprofit.
The company describes itself as a „business with a social mission“ and a „self-supporting, nonprofit social enterprise“ that offers training and employment for people with disabilities.
According to Skills‘ website, about 60% of its 600 employees have a self-identified disability. The company says it has „a fully integrated work environment where individuals with and without disabilities work side-by-side throughout our four lines of business.“
In a termination letter sent to some affected employees and seen by Business Insider, Skills Inc. CEO Todd Dunnington said the company’s staffing imbalance, caused by „reduced production rates at our largest customer,“ was initially expected to be short-term but is now „forecasted to last for an unknown amount of time.“
Several employees confirmed to Business Insider that they had been told the layoffs were due to reduced demand by Boeing.
The recent layoffs and work reductions followed reductions in 2019 due to reduced 737 Max production, a current employee, who asked to remain nameless, told Business Insider.
Workers at the company were blindsided and left scrambling – but while they were unhappy about the situation, most of the employees Business Insider spoke with had only positive things to say about Skills.
„I simply hope to hear from my Skills supervisor before my savings and food run out,“ one employee who was laid off told Business Insider. „I am more fortunate than many in that I have family and friends in Seattle who will make sure I do not end up homeless.“ The employee, who has a chronic illness affecting their vision, dexterity, and cognitive and memory abilities, asked to not be named in this story.
„I’m so sad,“ another employee, who was near retirement age and was laid off, told Business Insider. „I wasn’t ready to be put out to pasture.“
Representatives at Skills Inc. did not reply to repeated requests for comment and attempts to connect. Boeing did not respond to a request for comment.
The total number of affected employees was not immediately clear.
Boeing’s 737 Max crisis is rippling through the US labor market
Boeing announced in December that it would temporarily suspend 737 Max assembly and acceptance of supplier components starting this month. The 737 Max has been grounded worldwide since the March 2019 crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, the second fatal crash within five months. A total of 346 people were killed in the two crashes of the jet, the latest model of Boeing’s workhorse 737 narrow-body.
In April, Boeing reduced production of the Max to 42 units a month from 52, but it had otherwise maintained production throughout the grounding. However, it has been unable to deliver planes to customers during the grounding, leading to a pileup of about 400 completed planes at its facilities, stretching its storage capabilities.
While announcing the production suspension, Boeing said it had no plans to lay off or furlough any of the 12,000 employees at the facility that assembles the 737 Max, instead temporarily reassigning workers to other tasks or teams.
However, Boeing has about 600 suppliers that build components or provide services related to the Max, some of which earn a substantial portion of their revenue from Boeing contracts related to the plane. Boeing says it’s the largest manufacturing exporter in the US, which, coupled with the number of suppliers it buys from, can lead to an outsize effect on workforces around the country – Boeing has just over 150,000 employees across its commercial, defense, and global services divisions, but the actual number of engineering and manufacturing employees touched by the plane is far greater.
Earlier this month, Spirit AeroSystems, which builds fuselages for the plane, announced it would lay off 2,800 workers at its factory in Wichita, Kansas, because of the 737 Max production halt, with smaller cuts planned at its facilities in Tulsa and McAlester, Oklahoma. Spirit said that building components for the 737 Max accounted for about 50% of its annual revenue. An employee told Business Insider that layoffs would begin to take effect this week.
General Electric, which builds power plants for the 737 Max and other planes, laid off 70 temporary employees at a factory in Quebec, but GE’s aerospace-engines division has a far more robust client base than some other suppliers.
Boeing takes delivery of components and finishes assembling the planes at its factory in Renton, Washington.
Boeing has been scrambling to complete a fix for the 737 Max and get the plane recertified by the Federal Aviation Administration. However, the plane maker has suffered numerous setbacks and doesn’t have a timeline for returning the plane to service.
Do you work for a Boeing supplier or an airline affected by the 737 Max grounding? Email this reporter at [email protected].
Most job search advice is cookie-cutter. The advice you’re following is almost certainly the same advice other job seekers follow, making you just another candidate following the same script.
In today’s hyper-competitive job market, standing out is critical, a challenge most job seekers struggle with. Instead of relying on generic questions recommended by self-proclaimed career coaches, which often lead to a forgettable interview, ask unique, thought-provoking questions that’ll spark engaging conversations and leave a lasting impression.
Your level of interest in the company and the role.
Contributing to your employer’s success is essential.
You desire a cultural fit.
Here are the top four questions experts recommend candidates ask; hence, they’ve become cliché questions you should avoid asking:
“What are the key responsibilities of this position?”
Most likely, the job description answers this question. Therefore, asking this question indicates you didn’t read the job description. If you require clarification, ask, “How many outbound calls will I be required to make daily?” “What will be my monthly revenue target?”
“What does a typical day look like?”
Although it’s important to understand day-to-day expectations, this question tends to elicit vague responses and rarely leads to a deeper conversation. Don’t focus on what your day will look like; instead, focus on being clear on the results you need to deliver. Nobody I know has ever been fired for not following a “typical day.” However, I know several people who were fired for failing to meet expectations. Before accepting a job offer, ensure you’re capable of meeting the employer’s expectations.
“How would you describe the company culture?”
Asking this question screams, “I read somewhere to ask this question.” There are much better ways to research a company’s culture, such as speaking to current and former employees, reading online reviews and news articles. Furthermore, since your interviewer works for the company, they’re presumably comfortable with the culture. Do you expect your interviewer to give you the brutal truth? “Be careful of Craig; get on his bad side, and he’ll make your life miserable.” “Bob is close to retirement. I give him lots of slack, which the rest of the team needs to pick up.”
Truism: No matter how much due diligence you do, only when you start working for the employer will you experience and, therefore, know their culture firsthand.
“What opportunities are there for professional development?”
When asked this question, I immediately think the candidate cares more about gaining than contributing, a showstopper. Managing your career is your responsibility, not your employer’s.
Cliché questions don’t impress hiring managers, nor will they differentiate you from your competition. To transform your interaction with your interviewer from a Q&A session into a dynamic discussion, ask unique, insightful questions.
Here are my four go-to questions—I have many more—to accomplish this:
“Describe your management style. How will you manage me?”
This question gives your interviewer the opportunity to talk about themselves, which we all love doing. As well, being in sync with my boss is extremely important to me. The management style of who’ll be my boss is a determining factor in whether or not I’ll accept the job.
“What is the one thing I should never do that’ll piss you off and possibly damage our working relationship beyond repair?”
This question also allows me to determine whether I and my to-be boss would be in sync. Sometimes I ask, “What are your pet peeves?”
“When I join the team, what would be the most important contribution you’d want to see from me in the first six months?”
Setting myself up for failure is the last thing I want. As I mentioned, focus on the results you need to produce and timelines. How realistic are the expectations? It’s never about the question; it’s about what you want to know. It’s important to know whether you’ll be able to meet or even exceed your new boss’s expectations.
“If I wanted to sell you on an idea or suggestion, what do you need to know?”
Years ago, a candidate asked me this question. I was impressed he wasn’t looking just to put in time; he was looking for how he could be a contributing employee. Every time I ask this question, it leads to an in-depth discussion.
Other questions I’ve asked:
“What keeps you up at night?”
“If you were to leave this company, who would follow?”
“How do you handle an employee making a mistake?”
“If you were to give a Ted Talk, what topic would you talk about?”
“What are three highly valued skills at [company] that I should master to advance?”
“What are the informal expectations of the role?”
“What is one misconception people have about you [or the company]?”
Your questions reveal a great deal about your motivations, drive to make a meaningful impact on the business, and a chance to morph the questioning into a conversation. Cliché questions don’t lead to meaningful discussions, whereas unique, thought-provoking questions do and, in turn, make you memorable.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.
CALGARY – Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. reported a third-quarter profit of $2.27 billion, down from $2.34 billion in the same quarter last year.
The company says the profit amounted to $1.06 per diluted share for the quarter that ended Sept. 30 compared with $1.06 per diluted share a year earlier.
Product sales totalled $10.40 billion, down from $11.76 billion in the same quarter last year.
Daily production for the quarter averaged 1,363,086 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 1,393,614 a year ago.
On an adjusted basis, Canadian Natural says it earned 97 cents per diluted share for the quarter, down from an adjusted profit of $1.30 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 90 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2024.
CALGARY – Cenovus Energy Inc. reported its third-quarter profit fell compared with a year as its revenue edged lower.
The company says it earned $820 million or 42 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, down from $1.86 billion or 97 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $14.25 billion, down from $14.58 billion in the same quarter last year.
Total upstream production in the quarter amounted to 771,300 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 797,000 a year earlier.
Total downstream throughput was 642,900 barrels per day compared with 664,300 in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Cenovus says its funds flow amounted to $1.05 per diluted share in its latest quarter, down from adjusted funds flow of $1.81 per diluted share a year earlier.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2024.
