What can Wichita do now? Spirit layoffs call for urgency and action
As planemaker to the world, Wichita knows all about the volatility of the aviation industry.
So the community probably should be used to the kind of tough news it got Friday: Spirit AeroSystems will lay off 2,800 of its 13,000 workers in Wichita — bleak and unequivocal fallout from the indefinite grounding of the Boeing 737 Max.
The news followed an announcement in early December from Textron, the parent of Textron Aviation, saying it would eliminate up to 875 positions.
The cuts may not be over, and their ripple effect through the economy will be hard to predict or quantify. But one thing is certain: Wichita needs swift, decisive action and a commitment to support our friends and neighbors.
In the short term, that will mean helping laid-off employees find work, cover their bills and provide for their loved ones.
Organizations such as the United Way and Wichita Community Foundation already have signed on to a newly formed aviation task force aimed at mitigating the impacts of the latest layoffs. Other nonprofits, churches and employment assistance groups should be encouraged to ramp up their efforts as well.
Longer term, local and state leaders should sound the alarm about the need to recruit new businesses and diversify our economy, or we’ll continue to face the cycles of an increasingly mercurial industry.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has said — and incoming Wichita mayor Brandon Whipple agreed — that Kansas needs to do everything possible to keep Spirit workers employed so we don’t lose our highly skilled manufacturing workforce. But this will take more than thoughts, prayers and unemployment checks.
Despite some recent bright spots, such as Cargill’s decision to stay in Wichita and plans for a new medical school downtown, our community isn’t seeing nearly enough wins to offset the devastating job losses at aircraft manufacturing plants.
Elected officials must take economic development off the back burner, where it’s languished for years, and launch an all-out recruiting effort that would rival a Division I dynasty: Deliver new businesses and jobs to town, and come up with competitive strategies and generous funding streams to aid in that hunt.
In coming days, city leaders will consider a final plan from the Riverfront Legacy Master Plan, which is expected to propose more than $1 billion in new facilities on the east bank of the Arkansas River. And while it’s not necessary to scrap those plans, any potential new frills should be weighed against the vital importance of jobs and a healthy tax base.
Economists say the latest hit to Spirit AeroSystems and related sites isn’t all doom and gloom. If and when the 737 Max is certified to return to flight — a tough road, in light of damning documents made public this week — Boeing will need fuselages from Wichita to fill a backlog of orders from customers worldwide.
So the work — and workers — could return. But that doesn’t diminish the severity of this situation or the need for real solutions heading into the future.
This story was originally published January 10, 2020 at 4:02 PM.