Boeing cuts 160 jobs at El Paso plant

Boeing said Thursday that it would cut 160 jobs at its El Paso plant as it prepares for budget cuts from the Pentagon.

The aerospace and defense company said it is planning to consolidate its El Paso electronics facilities by the end of 2014, cutting more than 40 percent of the 370 positions currently there.

Boeing said that “anticipated U.S. defense budget cuts” would lead to less demand for the products manufactured at the facility.

"This difficult decision was based on a thorough study of the current and future business environment and the need to remain competitive," Derek McLuckey, director of Boeing Network Operations, said in a statement Thursday.

Boeing is the latest company to cut positions as the defense industry prepares for a slowdown in defense spending as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan come to a close. The Pentagon has already begun implementing a reduction of $487 billion in spending over the next decade, and further cuts could be coming if sequestration goes into effect.

---