The Boeing and IAM strike puts the aircraft manufacturer’s balance sheet at risk

Although Boeing (nay) still trying and failing to achieve its striking machinists back at work, has a few more corporate fires to put out. A crisis compounded by the work stoppage is the company’s shrinking cash supply.

Bank of America (ferry) Analyst Ron Epstein told Quartz on Wednesday that Boeing is losing $50 million a day in cash due to lost revenue and ongoing costs. That might not sound like much for a company whose the most recent quarterly earnings report said it had a cash position of $12.6 billion. But when the same company had a quarterly cash outflow of $4.3 billion before lost his main source of income, the situation becomes more difficult to navigate.

“If the strike goes beyond a certain point — I wish I could tell you, maybe a month? – the risk goes up,” Epstein said. “If you go beyond a month, things get more disruptive.”

Fortune recently reported that without its workers, the aircraft manufacturer stopped production on its 737 MAX, 767 and 777/777X commercial aircraft models. Of that, that’s 87% of current Boeing Delayed delivery of the airliner.

A surprising intransigence

Epstein said he was surprised that negotiations had become so strained between Boeing and the International Association of Machinists and Aeronautical Workers (IAM). He said his team penciled in the 40% pay rise the IAM demanded, thinking they would get it shortly. The union rejected a contract offer with a 25% bump.that is, things are less certain.

Tension rising in talks — with updates like Boeing institutes furloughsthe aircraft manufacturer throwing a “the best and final offer“with a 30% increase, and the union took up this offer”a blatant display of disrespect” – suggests that both sides may have more difficulty reaching an agreement than initially expected.

Like others in the industry, Epstein noted that the union’s demand would bring more than $1 billion a year in additional costsa sum which might otherwise be easily exceeded for so large an undertaking. Right now, they’re not making any money trying to cut their anticipated expenses a little.

“At some point, they have to get back into the business of building airplanes,” he said.