A story (here) on the Seattle Time website says that Boeing will lay off 800 machinists by year end. With attrition "the total number of positions cut this year will be between 2,000 and 2,300."

This news is not a complete surprise, as state forecasters have expected that Boeing's employment would peak this year. The 2,000 to 2,300 job drop by year end, however, is a bit bigger than the drop that is included in the economic forecast upon which the new state revenue forecast is based. That forecast shows aerospace employment peaking at 96,500 in the April-June quarter of this year and then declining to 95,800 in the fourth quarter and and then to 95,500 in the first quarter of 2014. 

All this underscores the importance that lawmakers include a sizable reserve in the budget they are writing for the 2013-15 biennium.