OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- More than 75 percent of Boeing Co. employees who work in operations that qualify for Washington state tax breaks make more than $30 an hour, a report by the state's Department of Revenue said.
Each year, the department each year puts together a summary of filings that are required from aerospace companies that benefit from state tax incentives. The summary for 2009 says 221 companies submitted reports, and that more than 77,000 people worked in the portions of operations that could qualify for the tax breaks. Boeing employed about three-quarters of those workers.
As of last month, Boeing employed a total of 72,285 people in Washington.
To encourage business development, Washington gives tax incentives to many different types of companies. Commercial aerospace companies can qualify for several exemptions or credits to the business and occupation tax, and breaks on sales and use taxes for investing in computer equipment and software.
The summary finds that at Boeing operations that qualify for the incentives, 76.2 percent of employees were paid more than $30 an hour, and just 0.3 percent were paid $15 or less. For other qualifying companies, 25.2 percent earned more than $30 an hour, while 22.6 percent got $15 or less.
