Staff reports

Members of United Auto Workers Local 647 at GE Aircraft Engines are to vote Wednesday on a four-year agreement reached Monday between company and union negotiators.

Local 647 will vote at meetings starting at 1 p.m. at the union hall on Reading Road. The new contract, which replaces the one that expired Sunday, is similar to national agreements reached last month between GE and its other major unions. The national agreement includes a 16.5 percent wage increase, holds the line on health insurance co-pays and limits premium increases.

The Local 647 agreement, which covers 800 production workers at the Evendale plant, is also designed to position the plant to attract new work, Gary Jordan, union president, said.

Local growth seen as slow, uneven

The local economy grew slowly in June, as companies reported small gains in production and new orders, according to a poll of companies by National Association of Purchasing Management-Cincinnati.

Despite those increases, growth is uneven. Compared to May, more employers in June said there was no change in new orders. Fewer said they plan to hire workers, and fewer companies reported increases in dollars spent by their purchasing departments.

Intelliseek makes pact with Unisys

Intelliseek of Over-the-Rhine said Monday that it has formed an alliance with Unisys Corp.'s Global Public Sector division to help the federal government cope with intelligence.

The two companies will develop solutions to help all sectors of the government.

Both companies provide information-processing products to the government. Intelliseek's clients include the U.S. Army, the CIA and the Defense Information Systems Agency.