"The health and safety of our employees, their families and our communities is our shared priority," Boeing's commercial airplanes division president Stan Deal said in a statement. Boeing was already facing significant headwinds prior to the coronavirus pandemic because of the crisis surrounding the 737 MAX, which has been grounded for more than a year following two fatal crashes. But the pandemic has further hit the company's outlook with most commercial airline travel suspended and major carriers thrust into a life-or-death fight. The company is seeking more than $60 billion in federal support for the US aerospace industry in the wake of the two crises. It announced a voluntary worker layoff plan on Thursday and said it expected "several thousand employees" to take a severance package or retire. Boeing currently employs around 70,000 people in Washington state.