WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Employment dropped considerably in Washington State and Florida in October, suggesting that a strike by factory workers at Boeing and Hurricane Helene accounted for much of the abrupt slowdown in U.S. job growth last month.

Boeing says it will be several weeks before it fully resumes building passenger planes, as factory workers return following a strike that lasted nearly two months.

Boeing received its first order after reaching a deal with striking machinists, but it still faces a difficult road ahead.

As Boeing's Machinists return after eight weeks on strike, experts predict the work stoppage strained finances for the company and region, but likely ended before the cost got prohibitive.

Boeing began notifying employees of layoffs Wednesday as it seeks to reduce its roughly 170,000-strong workforce by 10%.

Southwest Airlines Co. expects the strike by Boeing Co. workers and a lengthy push to boost production to once again limit the number of aircraft it receives next year.

A week after Boeing machinists ended an almost two-month strike, the aerospace manufacturer said Tuesday that October saw it deliver the smallest number of planes in years.

Boeing has so far laid off 2,199 workers in Washington, among job cuts that will eventually total about 17,000 across the company

The job cuts, part of a 17,000-strong employee reduction, will hit workers in Washington, Oregon, South Carolina and Missouri.

Boeing workers across the U.S. are learning about a round of layoffs, with most workers impacted currently working in the state of Washington.