Life is too short to play in shallow water, where your manager determines your career potential.
Pros
Management & contract Management have GREAT PAY and BENEFITS. Get a good (or great manager) you are set for life with an outstanding career all the perks and an opportunity to work with and learn from intelligent individuals from all over the world. This applies to an average, workaholic or a slacker employee. I had an OUTSTANDING experience in Building H (somewhat in Building AC) in Mossville, IL (Peoria Area.)
Cons
NOT ALL LOCATIONS AND MANAGERS ARE CREATED EQUAL. I worked in Mossville, IL - great experience, even with the known philandering and other indiscretions. Victoria, TX location - was a mess and had NO DESIRE to do anything more that POST, Caterpillar's "Values in Action" Human Resources @ CAT is only there to protect the company (and your bad boss), pray you never need to ask HR for anything important. Peoria Area locals - only known "BIG YELLOW", believing that CAT is the only successful career option and tolerate prevalent philandering of Managers. As a Fortune 500 company Caterpillar is powerful enough to call the media and MAKE IT BIG NEWS when CAT does something good and can make any bad news or mistreatment of employees go away. If you enjoy saying yes and have no desire to think or see results from your efforts you will do well at Cat. Get the wrong manager, your career and your ability to build a career is gone or limited, no matter how hard you work . You will go nowhere. Victoria, TX plant does not have it's act together. Veteran employees are doing the best they can and see the LACK OF CAT VALUES IN ACTION. Then there are the new employees that do not know any better and still have hope. (IE: Lead Welders that make $11.15 hr while an entry level assemblers makes $10.75. All given the hope that better is just around the corner.