New Delhi

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has initiated an investigation into claims made by the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA) regarding alleged retaliation by Boeing against two engineers in 2022.

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According to Reuters, the union maintains that the engineers, who advocated for a re-evaluation of previous engineering work on Boeing 777 and 787 jets, faced negative consequences from the company following the incident.

SPEEA filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the National Labour Relations Board, saying that identical negative evaluations were received by the engineers after their insistence on re-evaluation.

Responding to these allegations, Boeing said that a culture of non-retaliation and encouragement of employees to report any concerns was prevalent in the company.

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However, after conducting a thorough review involving documentation and witness interviews, Boeing stated that no evidence of retaliation or interference was found.

The company proclaimed that the allegations were unsubstantiated.

Despite Boeing's stance, one of the engineers has reportedly resigned from the company, as disclosed by the union.

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The FAA, on its part, said that it had increased supervision of aircraft manufacturers in 2022 to safeguard aviation industry employees from undue influence by employers.

Reuters cited Rich Plunkett, the SPEEA Director of Strategic Development, who challenged Boeing's statements.

Plunkett raised concerns over Boeing's transparency in addressing the matter, particularly regarding the coverup of information relevant to the incident.

The union's complaint requests access to a report submitted by Boeing to the FAA regarding the events in question.

According to SPEEA, the engineers clashed with Boeing management in 2022 over the use of different assumptions in analysing onboard computer networks on Boeing 777s and 787s, in line with the new FAA guidance.

Although there were objections from Boeing’s managers regarding cost implications and production delays, the engineers, backed by the FAA, ultimately succeeded, leading to the re-evaluation of the required analysis.

These allegations against Boeing come while bigger concerns surrounding safety practices within the aviation industry loom large.

Last week, whistleblower Sam Salehpour, a Boeing quality engineer, testified before senators, saying that he was silenced when he raised safety concerns regarding Boeing widebody jets.

Salehpour said he was transferred from the 787 program to the 777 jet following his inquiries.

(With inputs from Reuters)