After a tumultuous year, the last thing Boeing needed was a union strike. Shares of the aircraft manufacturing giant touched new 52-week lows on Friday as a labor dispute involving its largest unionized workforce — the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) — was set to enter into a second week.

Boeing employees still working received a notice on the furloughs Wednesday, which noted that it will encompass tens of thousands of nonunion employees for the duration of strike.

"I've never seen Boeing do that before. They might be feeling the pinch, feeling the hurt a little bit, you know--trying to save some money after spending so much money on four CE