A year ago, Boeing’s plan to build a massive assembly plant for its 787 jet in North Charleston injected enthusiasm into a battered business community and gave some badly needed reassurance that the recession was only temporary. That hope still is burning.

The company is building a mammoth $750 million manufacturing plant at Charleston International Airport that’s set to open in July. It has pledged in writing to hire at least 3,800 workers. And it’s already tapping into local workers and companies, sending money into the region’s economy. Read the rest of this entry

Airlines must eventually begin raising wages – even with the cost pressures they face – if they want to attract and retain employees, an aviation consultant said Monday.

Michael Boyd, president of the Boyd Group International, said airlines face the possibility that they won’t be able to attract employees, particularly pilots, without reversing the cost pressure to lower pay.

“We have an airline industry that is no longer going to be operating on low wages,” Boyd said at his company’s annual aviation conference in New Orleans. “We’re not going to have that anymore.” Read the rest of this entry

Aviation Technical Services in Everett has been recruiting new workers in recent months, as more clients have sought aircraft maintenance work.

The company, which maintains, overhauls and retrofits airframes for airlines and cargo companies, has been holding job fairs in Washington and the Midwest looking for employees. Read the rest of this entry

GE Aviation announced yesterday that it is adding 500 new jobs at two plants in Ohio.

The Evendale and Dayton facilities are expected to add the jobs over the next year, according to officials.

Although GE announced in January 2009 that it would be eliminating jobs in Ohio and elsewhere, the aerospace industry has since rebounded and GE has enjoyed a surge in aircraft orders. Read the rest of this entry

General Electric continues to employ workers at their jet-engine facility located in Durham, pushed by increased demand for engines and maintenance work.

The enormous manufacturing facility has added roughly 40 hourly technicians this year, plant supervisor Doug McLean and U.S. Rep. David Price proclaimed at a news conference this morning. The plant at this time employs approximately 320 people. Read the rest of this entry

The number of licensed aircraft mechanic jobs lost to outsourcing facilities and foreign repair stations where work is done by less qualified, less skilled labor continues to rise. The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) is working with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to save jobs and increase the safety of aircraft for the flying public.

“Safe skies and American jobs are not partisan questions,” said Louie Key, AMFA National Director. “We need solutions. The interests of aircraft mechanics and air passengers have been ignored for too long and AMFA isn’t going to stand by and let it keep happening.” Read the rest of this entry