Caterpillar reviews

4.0

78% would recommend to a friend

(7,309 total reviews)

Joe Creed

68% approve of CEO

74% positive business outlook

Caterpillar has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 7,309 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Caterpillar employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Manufacturing industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

7K reviews
3.0
Nov 6, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

There can be many opportunities with Cat, they do offer tuition reimbursement and programs to achieve better jobs internally. Unlike many companies, there is opportunity for minorities beyond what you find in most large companies. They do offer very decent compensation and most beneifts are on par with other employers.

Cons

A total lack of communication from the lowest level to the highest. Poor implementation of new programs and a patchwork of programs for employees that varies from area to area and plant to plant. Unless you are "in the loop" many opportunities for employees are never utilized properly and many programs cannot be sustained due to constantly changing rules. Caterpillar also believes in the old adage "the beatings will continue until morale improves" for their workers which leads to a disaffected and disengaged workforce.

4.0
Oct 26, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Family oriented. Very welcoming. Big equipment that is fun to play with.

Cons

Small town, not much to do. Although, you are only 3 hours in any direction from a major city. Those are Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis. There are long rotational programs that take place if you want to be an engineer in marketing.

3.0
Oct 7, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Pay is better than working for a smaller company. Not required to work 2 weeks of days then 2 weeks of nights (No swing shifts like other companies in Decatur, IL). Health insurance is not as expensive as in other companies. It is a safety aware environment. Can contribute up to 70% of pay into 401K up to the federal cap. Quality issues usually get resolved

Cons

Nepotism. Pension was eliminated and replaced with 401K for Hourly Workers who were hired as Full-Time after Jan. 19, 2005. 2-Tiered wage scale. You can do the same job as someone who was hired under the old contract and they get $5 more per hour than you and they get the pension plan. Animosity between the 3 shifts. Shifts setting up other shifts to fail. People trying to do the easier work and leaving the harder work for the next shift. If you are a labor grade 6 or lower, then your upward mobility is limited. You either have to be related to or know the right people to move up within the company, unless you graduated top of your college class. A worker is pretty much stagnant in upward mobility once accepting a Hourly Wage Job. If you are a hard working, educated, farm-boy, you will be stuck on the factory floor. If a production worker is 1 minute late for work, you will be penalized the same as if you had missed the entire day of work. Supervisors can fire Supplemental Workers for any, or no reason at all. The company gives too much emphasis on 6-Sigma. I believe someone who is a creative problem solver can do the same things as any 6-Sigma Blackbelt. If you are a woman or minority, you can move up in this company.

Viewing 7279 - 7281 of 7,309 Reviews

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