IL Can't Compete for Caterpillar Expansions

Cat employment in its home state has remained flat in 10 years during which the company's payroll has grown by 74%

Caterpillar CEO Douglas Oberhelman says that Illinois didn't even make the first cut — a list of more than 20 states — in the company's continent-wide search for a new factory to manufacture small tractors and mini-excavators. He added that the state hasn't made the first cut in any of company's factory location efforts for several years.

"Look at the basics," Oberhelman said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. "The (state's) fiscal situation was a disaster, maybe worse than now. Workers' comp was really bad, and we had a tort situation still known for attracting plaintiffs from all over the world. It goes on and on."

(More on Caterpillar expanding outside Illinois . . . )

Companies in this article
Latest