July 24, 2012--"Contingent Workforce"
Caterpillar Inc. is a American corporation which designs, manufactures, markets, and sells machinery and engines as well as financial products and insurance to customers via a worldwide dealer network.
It is the world's largest manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines. With more than $70 billion in assets and about 94,000 employees (about half of whom are located in the United States), Caterpillar was ranked number one in its industry and number 46 overall in the 2012 Fortune 500 and is a company about which Americans feel justifiable proud--they actually make something that is in global demand, much of it right here and not outsourced. Its stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and its headquarters is located in Peoria, Illinois, where thousands are employed.
With profits last year at record levels--$4.9 billion--and projected to be even higher this year, it is surprising and disappointing to know that Caterpillar is seeking to force much of its U.S. workforce to contribute $1,900 a year more than at present to cover the cost of their health care coverage and to agree to a six-year wage and pension freeze. The company says it needs to do this in order to hold down labor costs so it can remain internationally competitive.
Workers at their Joliet, Illinois plant--where hydraulic parts that are essential for much of the company's earth-moving equipment are manufactured--have been on strike for 12 weeks, and Caterpillar has replaced them with lower-wage "contingency workers" (as they are called by management--the union calls them "scabs") and union members who cannot stay out of work and live on their $150 a week strike benefits.
The union says that Caterpillar workers at this plant averaged $55,000 a year in wages last year while the company made $39,000 in profit for each employee.
When asked why they are demanding these give-backs at a time when profits are at record levels, company officials say that it is to get labor costs under control in anticipation of any future downturns. The union asks--Why don't we wait and see and take corrective action if necessary if that in fact occurs?
In the meantime, Caterpillar refuses to negotiate--their position: take it or leave it. In the meantime any new workers hired--and they added 6,500 jobs over the past year--will be paid substantially less than current workers. The company instituted a two-tier system where those employees with seniority make $26 an hour while newbies receive just $12 to $19.
Thus the union suspects that the company would be happy to have senior workers leave so they could hire lower-cost replacements.
Caterpillar, incidentally, is a company Barack Obama visited back in February 2009, citing it as a noteworthy example of an American company that was creating jobs and doing right by their employees.
They are indeed doing right by their employees--some of their employees: senior exceutive who have seen their compensation soar as a result of the company's profitability. Production workers, however, are being forced to work for less.
It is the world's largest manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines. With more than $70 billion in assets and about 94,000 employees (about half of whom are located in the United States), Caterpillar was ranked number one in its industry and number 46 overall in the 2012 Fortune 500 and is a company about which Americans feel justifiable proud--they actually make something that is in global demand, much of it right here and not outsourced. Its stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and its headquarters is located in Peoria, Illinois, where thousands are employed.
With profits last year at record levels--$4.9 billion--and projected to be even higher this year, it is surprising and disappointing to know that Caterpillar is seeking to force much of its U.S. workforce to contribute $1,900 a year more than at present to cover the cost of their health care coverage and to agree to a six-year wage and pension freeze. The company says it needs to do this in order to hold down labor costs so it can remain internationally competitive.
Workers at their Joliet, Illinois plant--where hydraulic parts that are essential for much of the company's earth-moving equipment are manufactured--have been on strike for 12 weeks, and Caterpillar has replaced them with lower-wage "contingency workers" (as they are called by management--the union calls them "scabs") and union members who cannot stay out of work and live on their $150 a week strike benefits.
The union says that Caterpillar workers at this plant averaged $55,000 a year in wages last year while the company made $39,000 in profit for each employee.
When asked why they are demanding these give-backs at a time when profits are at record levels, company officials say that it is to get labor costs under control in anticipation of any future downturns. The union asks--Why don't we wait and see and take corrective action if necessary if that in fact occurs?
In the meantime, Caterpillar refuses to negotiate--their position: take it or leave it. In the meantime any new workers hired--and they added 6,500 jobs over the past year--will be paid substantially less than current workers. The company instituted a two-tier system where those employees with seniority make $26 an hour while newbies receive just $12 to $19.
Thus the union suspects that the company would be happy to have senior workers leave so they could hire lower-cost replacements.
Caterpillar, incidentally, is a company Barack Obama visited back in February 2009, citing it as a noteworthy example of an American company that was creating jobs and doing right by their employees.
They are indeed doing right by their employees--some of their employees: senior exceutive who have seen their compensation soar as a result of the company's profitability. Production workers, however, are being forced to work for less.
posted by Steven Zwerling at
4:58 AM
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