Boeing announced on Friday that it reported a sixfold rise in submissions from employees raising safety concerns about its products and services in the first two months of 2024 compared to the same period last year.
Boeing's Heightened Safety Concerns
Boeing stated in its annual safety report that the significant increase in these reports followed an incident on January 5 involving a mid-air cabin panel blowout on a newly delivered Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 jet.
In February, an expert panel reviewing Boeing's safety management processes discovered a disconnect between the company's senior management and employees engaged in its safety culture. The company said it has increased its use of external safety data sources and partnered with the FAA to create machine-learning algorithms designed to detect emerging hazards and safety trends. Mike Delaney, Boeing's chief aerospace safety officer, emphasized that their actions are centered on making additional improvements to ensure the safety, compliance, and conformance of their products and services without compromise.
The incident on January 5 has subjected Boeing to increased scrutiny and led US regulators to limit production levels of the company's popular 737 MAX jets until it addresses safety concerns.
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Upsurge in Concerns Through Speak Up Program
In its third annual safety report, released Friday, Boeing announced that it observed a 500% surge in submissions in the first two months of 2024 regarding safety concerns about its products and services compared to the same period from the previous year.
The significant rise in reports followed the January 5 incident where a mid-air cabin panel blew out on a nearly-new 737 Max due to improper reinsertion at Boeing's final assembly line.
Boeing's Collaboration with Labor Union
Boeing announced its collaboration with its largest labor union and the Federal Aviation Administration to review safety issues reported by employees as part of a wider initiative to address concerns regarding the company's safety culture. In its third annual safety report released on Friday, the plane maker announced the formation of a new event review committee, which will consist of representatives from the regulator, Boeing, and District 751 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers to address safety concerns raised by employees through the company's Speak Up program.
The union represents over 30,000 of Boeing's production workers. The collaboration started in 2023, preceding a January accident where a fuselage section blew off a nearly new 737 MAX 9, as per a company spokesperson. However, efforts to promote greater employee participation in the Speak Up program and to ensure their concerns are addressed have gained increased importance at the plane-maker following the incident.
The safety report is released approximately a week before the company is set to submit a 90-day plan to the FAA. The plan will outline the corrective actions Boeing intends to implement to address quality control issues at its factories.
