Can Boeing Be Forced To Let A Blind Machinist Build Planes? A New Lawsuit Says Yes

Boeing has been a troubled company over the past two decades, and in some ways since merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Some might even describe them as being like the blind leading the blind at least because they’re now being sued for refusing to employ a blind machinist to build aircraft.<br>Boeing’s product has had huge problems as it is

Yet the law here may require them to employ a blind machinist

And ironically, this one may do a better job than the people who have actually been building planes for them.

Boeing Has Been A Manufacturing Disaster

The 2018 Lion Air and 2019 Ethiopian MAX crashes brought Boeing’s troubles into stark relief, but the 787 program had a history of problems from the time the plane was first rolled in 2007 with a hollow shell and with plywood doors, to smoke and fire events in 2013 and a software bug in 2015 that risked loss of electrical power.

From 2020 – 2022 they dealt with improperly sized shims, gaps in the fuselage and surfaces outside flatness specifications. Deliveries stopped more than once, including a year-long suspension. The FAA took away authority to issue airworthiness certificates for the plane.

In 2021 there was a 737 MAX electrical grounding problem in cockpit equipment. Deliveries stopped and approximately 109 already-delivered aircraft were temporarilyremoved from service.

A series of fiascos occurred throughout 2023, from improperly installed 737 MAX tail fittings; another 787 shimming problem that delayed deliveries; misdrilled 737 MAX aft-pressure-bulkhead holes; and missing and loose rudder-control hardware;

Then in January 2024 Alaska Airlines flight 1282 blew out a door plug on a nearly new 737 MAX 9. All four retaining bolts were missing before the flight, and factory work hadn’t been properly document and inspections weren’t done. Subsequently, more misdrilled MAX fuselage holes were found. Boeing failed an FAA audit. They had to rework 50 aircraft. An engineer whistleblower claimed Boeing used excessive force to close 787 fuselage gaps and left drilling debris in joints.

In May 2024, Boeing reported that employees had recorded electrical bonding inspections as completed when they hadn’t been done. Then in June, more than 900 fasteners per undelivered Boeing 787 were discovered to have been incorrectly torqued, tightened from the bolt head rather than the nut.

Last year the FAA proposed $3.1 million in penalties for hundreds of quality system violations, two unairworthy aircraft presented for certification, and pressure on a Boeing employee exercising delegated FAA authority to approve a noncompliant plane. Just this month, the FAA ordered inspections of 471 MAX aircraft for possible cracking (because older 737s developed cracks, though none had been found yet on a MAX).

Boeing Hired, Then Refused Accommodations For, A Blind Machinist

Jonathan Ott is blind with some remaining vision and had spent nearly ten years working as a machinist at The Lighthouse for the Blind, manufacturing parts for Boeing. At a Boeing hiring event in 2023, he says he was offered a machinist position in their Everett factory. His blindness was obvious. His wife assisted him and he used a white cane.

He received an offer for a Composite Fabricator C, not machinist. He disclosed his blindness on Boeing’s medical questionnaire. Asked what he required, he said he needed to inspect the workplace first but would probably require a CCTV video magnifier.

During January 2024 orientation, Boeing’s computer training was inaccessible. A coworker had to read the screen to him. He says he completed assigned work on time with coworker and HR assistance, but Boeing told him remaining in the plant was unsafe. He suggested accessible software and continuing training while accommodations were arranged, but he was removed from the workplace.

Boeing allegedly cited forklifts, cranes and moving vehicles and suggested Ott had concealed his blindness (despite his white cane and medical disclosure). Boeing then allegedly said the composite-fabricator job required operating a vehicle, which hadn’t previously been disclosed. After six months of unpaid leave, Boeing closed his file. An official at his previous employer, which contracted with Boeing, said a Boeing manager stated the company did not want “[expletive] blind people” working there, but that’s probably not going to be admitted in any trial.

According to Boeing, they never actually offered a machinist job, says they never forcibly “escorted” from the plant, and that while they placed him in a 60-day reassignment process Ott was only interested in the safety specialist opening where driving was required. They say he couldn’t navigate the working factory safely without ongoing assistance from a sighted employee, and that permanently assigning another employee to perform that function is not a reasonable accommodation.

This isn’t Boeing’s...