Reuters: U.S.: IAM workers strike at Caterpillar's Joliet plant

Reuters: U.S. Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

IAM workers strike at Caterpillar's Joliet plant May 1st 2012, 13:08 Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Caterpillar braces for strike amid labor dispute Mon, Apr 30 2012 Caterpillar profit up; outlook seen as modest Wed, Apr 25 2012 AMR fires opening shot in court battle with workers Mon, Apr 23 2012 Thousands of AT&T workers to stay on job as talks continue Sun, Apr 8 2012 Analysis & Opinion Microsoft enters the e-book wars Prosperity need not kill religion The Caterpillar logo is seen on a tractor in Gilbert, Arizona October 20, 2009. Credit: Reuters/Joshua Lott Tue May 1, 2012 9:08am EDT (Reuters) - About 800 workers went on strike at a Caterpillar Inc plant in Joliet, Illinois, early Tuesday morning after one of the company's union contracts expired with little indication of when a new pact could be in place. The employees, represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union, firmly rejected the company's six-year contract offer during a vote Sunday night. On Monday, union officials said talks had ended with Caterpillar. Caterpillar has responded to the strike by bringing in replacement workers so that it can continue meeting production schedules as planned, spokesman Rusty Dunn said on Tuesday. The workers on strike produce hydraulic components and systems for a variety of Caterpillar machines, including track-type tractors, wheel loaders and mining trucks. The labor dispute comes as Caterpillar is racing to fill growing demand in North America and in the global mining sector. While the company has experienced a slowdown in China, Europe and Brazil, it is relying on its strength in North America and its mining business to offset that weakness. IAM's strike also follows a high-profile labor dispute that took place late last year between Caterpillar and the Canadian Auto Workers at a locomotive plant in London, Ontario. CAW workers voted down a Caterpillar offer, and the company ended up closing the plant and moving the work elsewhere. Steve Jones, an official with the IAM Local 851, said about 50 workers showed up to the picket line in Joliet on Tuesday morning. No further negotiations are scheduled with Caterpillar, he added. On Monday, Jones told Reuters that Caterpillar's recent offer was rejected because it calls for "wage stagnation" over the next six years and higher health care premiums. "We're going to be in a much worse economic position six years from now than we are now," Jones said. Caterpillar has said the company its proposed deal represented a "competitive contract offer." Shares of Caterpillar were unchanged at $102.77 in trading before the market opened. (Reporting By John D. Stoll in Detroit; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn) Related Quotes and News Company Price Related News Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above.

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