Caterpillar worker’s grisly foundry death blamed on training and work conditions

Just nine days into his new job at Caterpillar’s foundry in Mapleton, Illinois, Steven Dierkes, a 39-year-old father of three, fell into an 11ft-deep pot of molten iron and was incinerated.

Now workers at the plant are blaming lack of training, poor safety protections and grueling working conditions for his death and are threatening strike action at the world’s largest construction equipment manufacturer.

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Dierkes’ death in June was the subject of a report issued by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Osha) earlier this month. The report determined that “​​if required safety guards or fall protection had been installed, the 39-year-old employee’s ninth day on the job might not have been their last”.

Osha said workers at Caterpillar’s foundry were “routinely exposed” to unprotected fall hazards and has proposed a fine of $145,027. The decision does not go far enough for Jessica Sutter, Dierkes’ fiancee.

“My children are left without their father, I am left without my fiancee, my partner, my best friend, all because they didn’t want to take better safety precautions for that type of work,” Sutter, who had two daughters with Dierkes, said.

She claimed Caterpillar has not provided any assistance or support to her and her daughters. She is now trying to find additional work to save enough money to find a new place to live with her children because her landlord won’t conduct needed repairs on her home. She said they were already suffering financially because Dierkes had been out of work for two months before starting at Caterpillar.

Sutter criticized Caterpillar for putting her fiance in a dangerous position without adequate safety protections.

“As far as Caterpillar, I feel that they are murderers. It’s a slaughterhouse. No one should have to lose their life like this,” she said. “They do not have any compassion for human decency at all, they are a company of no humanity.”

Former and current workers at the foundry also raised concerns about safety. One former employee at the Mapleton foundry, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation from prospective employers, quit in late 2021 due to unsafe working conditions.

“You breathe in smoke and dust six, seven days a week,” the former employee said. “There was a lack of concern whenever we brought up a safety issue there. Most of the time it was overlooked or their fix created a whole new safety issue or multiple issues.”

A current employee at the foundry, who also requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, explained in detail the working conditions and lack of safety protections that contributed to Dierkes’ death. Over 800 workers are employed at the foundry.