Boeing
Boeing's 787 factory in Everett, Washington.
- Boeing will suspend production at its Washington state facilities for two weeks in an effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
- The company operates two major factories and several smaller facilities in the Puget Sound area.
- The announcement comes one day after the first Boeing employee died of COVID-19.
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Boeing said on Monday that it would suspend production at its facilities in Washington state for two weeks, citing the ongoing novel coronavirus outbreak.
The announcement came one day after an employee from the company's Everett, Washington, plant died of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The worker, who was not immediately named, was the first death from the virus among the company's workforce.
There were 29 confirmed cases of the virus among Boeing's employees as of Sunday, the Seattle Times reported. 24 of those were in the Puget Sound area of Washington.
In a press release, the company said that affected employees who could not work from home would continue to be paid for 10 business days, covering the entire suspension period.
"These actions are being taken to ensure the well-being of employees, their families and the local community, and will include an orderly shutdown consistent with the requirements of its customers," the press release said.
"This necessary step protects our employees and the communities where they work and live," Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said in the release. "We continue to work closely with public health officials, and we're in contact with our customers, suppliers and other stakeholders who are affected by this temporary suspension."
About 70,000 employees work at the two major factories and several smaller facilities in the Puget Sound region. The company's other production sites, in Missouri, South Carolina, Arizona, and Pennsylvania, will remain open.
Washington, which has been among the hardest-hit states so far, was the first to declare a state of emergency.
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