UNION officials at a dumper truck factory hit by its first strike hope to meet management today to urge them to seek arbitration to resolve the dispute.

More than 500 shopfloor workers took part in the 24-hour stoppage at Caterpillar Peterlee, affecting three shifts at the County Durham plant from 8am yesterday.

Managers claimed some of the workforce went into work, but plant officials of the engineering union AEEU said to their knowledge only one chargehand failed to heed the strike call.

The action did not affect the 200-plus non-shopfloor staff at the factory.

Everyone arriving at the site was greeted by pickets and given a leaflet outlining the workforce position.

They were asked to beep their horn in support on leaving the site, on Peterlee's North-West Industrial Estate.

The strike was called by the AEEU as "the only realistic option" in response to what it termed the "unreasonable demands" of the American-owned company.

The union has threatened to repeat the action on subsequent Tuesdays if there is no change in the situation.

It is a response to a three-year pay freeze and a list of more than 30 changes in conditions to contractual terms which Caterpillar plans to implement.

Easington MP John Cummings offered to act as a "go-between" and wrote to Caterpillar Peterlee managing director Richard Cooper urging him to take the dispute to the arbitration and conciliation service Acas.

Caterpillar human resources manager Frank Siddle said on the eve of the strike that it was still considered "an internal matter" which the company hoped to resolve "directly with our employees".

Despite renewed calls to seek the assistance of Acas, a company spokesman repeated last night: "We still regard this as an internal matter and we are keeping it in-house."

AEEU works convenor Kelvin Wood said that other than the one chargehand the strike call was adhered to "100 per cent".

"It has all been orderly and by the book. It's disappointing we've had no change from the management, but we'll try to make contact with Mr Siddle to see where they stand with Acas. We'll consider our next step depending on the response.