Plane maker Boeing is facing a $1.25 million fine for pressuring employees tasked with performing FAA-sanctioned safety inspection work.
The agency alleged Boeing managers put pressure on employees designated to inspect aircraft on behalf of the US safety authority, the FAA.
Managers harassed safety-unit employees to inspect planes even before they were ready, ordered them to speed up inspections and retaliated against one employee for complaining about being pressured.
Boeing said it opened an internal investigation into the allegations and took corrective action.
For many years the FAA has used in-house employees of aircraft manufacturers to perform some safety-related work but since the Boeing 737 Max crisis, this ‘cushy relationship’ has come under heavy criticism by lawmakers.
"Undue pressure of any type is inconsistent with our values and will not be tolerated," Boeing spokesperson Peter Pedraza said in a statement.
The current allegations relate to inspections between 2017 and 2019 at Boeing’s plant in North Charleston, SC, which doesn’t assemble Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
By Ray Montgomery, US editor
