Boeing begins layoffs amid labor union strike, controversy over CEO's home purchase: 'Very difficult time'

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Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg moved to Seattle while 33,000 of the company's workers took to the picket line. (Credit: Derrick Louie with Clarity Northwest Photography & Laura Halliday with Realogics Sotheby's International Realty and KCPQ)

Boeing is beginning a series of furloughs in response to its largest labor union going on strike, according to a statement released to employees on Wednesday.

The strike involves over 33,000 workers in the Seattle area and began on Friday after unions overwhelmingly refused tentative contract negotiations provided by the company.

CEO Kelly Ortberg, who took on the role of chief executive last month, emailed all employees on «temporary furloughs» on Wednesday morning.

CEO OF BOEING CLOSES ON $4.1M SEATTLE HOME AMID FACTORY WORKERS' STRIKE: 'THEY CAN PAY US, TOO'

"…We are initiating temporary furloughs over the coming days that will impact a large number of US-based executives, managers and employees," wrote Ortberg. «All benefits will continue for affected employees, and to limit the impact to you, we are planning for selected employees to take one week of furlough every four weeks on a rolling basis for the duration of the strike.» 

Additionally, Ortberg vowed that both he and his «leadership team» will be taking a pay reduction during the course of the strike, but did not offer details on how much.

A strike sign is pictured outside a Boeing factory in Renton, Washington, on Friday. (Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

The CEO established in writing that his plan to steer the troubled aerospace company through the strike is to avoid taking «any actions that inhibit our ability to fully recover in the future.»

Ortberg also clarified that production on the Boeing 787 will