BY STEVE BLOODWORTH
PEORIA, Illinois - Four hundred members of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 974 on strike against Caterpillar Inc., along with fellow strikers from other UAW locals, demonstrated outside the company's corporate headquarters here April 27.

Strikers from Pontiac, Michigan, and Aurora and Decatur, Illinois, joined the action. These lunch-hour rallies have become a weekly event since 9,500 UAW members walked out over unfair labor practices at eight plants in three states last June. Strikers, their families, and supporters picket the front entrance of Caterpillar's headquarters for two hours and then gather to hear updates on strike developments and negotiations. The last round of contract talks broke off March 17 with no resumption date scheduled.

The rally took place one day prior to the official observance of Workers Memorial Day, and commemorated Caterpillar workers who had been killed or seriously injured on the job. UAW Local 974 president Jerry Brown reminded those in attendance that, "It was a strong union that made Caterpillar a safer workplace."

To drive this point home, a health and safety representative from the local union reported on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) records on Caterpillar's performance during the last 10 months of production using primarily management and temporary employees. OSHA reports indicate that "several hundred" managers and at least as many temporary workers - whose injuries the company does not have to report - were hurt on the job in that period. Injuries included broken ribs, amputated fingers, and a fractured back.

These statistics did not find their way into a recent Caterpillar release on its first quarter earnings for 1995. The heavy equipment maker announced earnings of $300 million, up 15 percent from the same period in 1994.

UAW officials point to double-digit growth in the construction-equipment market and the cyclical nature of the industry as factors contributing to the high earnings. While the company has reported record profits for five quarters in a row, it lost money in seven out of eight quarters prior to that.

The falling dollar has also boosted exports and given Caterpillar an added edge in its sales war with competitors based in Japan and Germany. This helps explain why the company made more money by selling less equipment. The union sighted Stark's Of-Highway Ledger, an industry production newsletter, which shows production fell 27 percent, particularly at struck Caterpillar assembly plants in East Peoria, Decatur, and Aurora.

In spite of the latest profit announcement, workers on the picket line say they will continue the fight until the union wins a contract with the company.  
 
 
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