13 January, 2011After several weeks of negotiation, trade unions finally made major breakthroughs that could go down in Caterpillar history.
BELGIUM: Initiated in September 2010, the negotiations have necessitated several meetings with management. Against the background of these negotiations, the wage discrepancies and hiring in the first part of the year of sub-contracted workers from temporary labour agencies and the use of precarious work contracts (Win-Win plan), essentially paid for by the State, which had resulted in a certain number of unsatisfactory tests within the two weeks following the hiring.
The unions' priorities and demands focused first and foremost on improving the wage scale, revising classifications and revaluing trades, and implementing a pre-retirement and end of career scheme. After tough negotiations, the unions obtained a five to seven per cent increase of the starting wage and, for the whole of the workforce, an annual revision of the wage including a fixed percentage and another percentage based on multi-skilling, qualifications and team spirit.
The seniority bonus has been indexed since January 1, 2011 and prolonged to 41 years of service. The agreement provides for a four per cent bonus increase and its development on an annual basis. In addition, all workers now have the possibility of taking pre-retirement at the age of 58 after 37 years of service (38 in 2012) and, under equal conditions, each pre-retirement is replaced by a permanent work contract. The end of career bonus is improved by adding two more years when calculating its amount.
Recognizing that all trades have changed considerably, Caterpillar agreed to carry out an analysis of the various trades in the plant and revalue them in the near future.
The Caterpillar Gosselies plant in Belgium, the largest outside the United States, employs over 4,000 workers. In June 2010, with the support of unions, workers had gone on a 24-hour strike, demanding a wage revaluation that management had rejected.
The new agreement was signed in December 2010 by all unions represented in the plant.