CATERPILLAR:brRecord profits, CEO pay hiked by 60%, company wants wage concessions from workers | BREAKING NEWS | Sky Valley Chronicle Washington State News

CATERPILLAR:brRecord profits, CEO pay hiked by 60%, company wants wage concessions from workers | BREAKING NEWS | Sky Valley Chronicle Washington State News

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“In paring their payrolls, they’re paring their customers…and we no longer have any means of making up for the shortfall in consumer demand. Federal stimulus spending is over. In fact, state and local governments continue to lay off large numbers. The government cut 13,000 jobs in May. Instead of a boost, government cuts have become a considerable drag on the rest of the economy.”

Now comes word that workers at an Illinois plant for the manufacturer Caterpillar have been on strike for a month after rejecting a “concession-heavy contract” proposed by the company, say union officials. Last Friday workers rejected a second Caterpillar offer, by a vote of 504-116.

According to a new report by Nation of Change the contract “provided no raises, eliminated the defined benefits pension program, weakened seniority rights and required machinists to pay higher contributions for health care.”

“All of this, at a time when the company is making record profits. In fact, Fortune Magazine recently said the company is “crushing it” when it comes to profitability,” yet at the same time refuses to give its workers a raise while the company did see fit to increase its CEO’s pay by 60 percent.

The annual compensation of Caterpillar Inc.’s chairman and chief executive rose 60 percent in 2011, as the company posted record revenue of $60.1 billion.

Douglas Oberhelman earned $16.9 million in 2011 in salary, bonuses, stock and option awards and retirement plan contributions.

The typical American worker would have to work 244 years in order to earn what the average CEO makes in just one year.

Over the last 30 years, CEO pay has increased 127 times faster than worker pay, says the report.