SEATTLE—Aerospace suppliers are gearing up for a hiring spree in 2023 but could face stiff competition for skilled laborers, including from their top customers—planemakers Boeing and Airbus.
The tight labor market is a key factor in the industry’s supply-chain shortages, and could determine whether Boeing and Airbus meet near-term production goals, industry officials said.
Executives at last week’s Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance conference, a gathering of top suppliers, expressed concern about replacing workers who left through layoffs or attrition during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We just had massive, massive hiring problems in 2021 and 2022,” said Chris Celtruda, chief executive of Valence Surface Technologies, which provides metal finishing and specialty coating services to Boeing and Airbus….