Boeing technical engineers ratify four-year labour deal

SEATTLE (REUTERS) - Boeing Co technical workers voted by a wide margin to ratify a new four-year labour agreement with the company, ending the possibility of a strike that could have cut production at a critical time for the aircraft maker.

A strike by just technical workers could have slowed or even halted production of Boeing airplanes, with the workers key to solving engineering issues on the factory floor.

It also could have complicated a wide-ranging review of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner by the Federal Aviation Administration and a probe by the National Transportation Safety Board, after charred batteries on two 787s prompted a grounding of the entire fleet in January.

Last month, a second, larger Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA) bargaining unit, representing 15,500 professional engineers, narrowly accepted a similar contract.