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John Deere Layoffs Across 3 US Factories

July 8, 2024

John Deere announced that it will lay off about 600 employees across three U.S. factories. After that, production will shift to a newly planned facility in Ramos, Mexico.

CNN reports that the company plans to lay off about 310 employees at two Iowa-based plants in Dubuque and Davenport, effective Aug. 30. A factory in East Moline, Illinois, will also be affected, with 280 employees unemployed.

The news organization explains that the Illinois factory produces harvesting equipment, and the two Iowa factories create construction and forestry equipment. “These changes are being made due to reduced demand for the products produced at these facilities,” the company told CNN in a statement. “To better position Deere to meet future demand, we continue to take proactive steps to reduce production and inventory.”

John Deere plans to lay off hundreds of employees across three Midwest factories by the end of next month. The layoffs are due to reduced demand for products from those factories, the company said. https://t.co/1Tid1lSD07
— NewsNation (@NewsNation) July 8, 2024

According to the Associated Press, the company reported a more than 15% revenue decline in its third straight quarter of declining sales. The website reports that John Deere executives expect further sales declines in the second half of the fiscal year. They plan to “take proactive steps to reduce production and inventory.”

In May, the company reported a net income of $2.370 billion for Q2, which ended on April 28, 2024. This is equivalent to $8.53 per share, compared with a net income of $2.860 billion — or $9.65 per share — in Q2 of 2023.

“John Deere’s second-quarter results were noteworthy in light of continued changes across the global agricultural sector,” stated John C. May, chairman and CEO. “Thanks to the dedication and hard work of our team, we continue to demonstrate structurally higher performance levels across business cycles and are benefitting from stability in construction end markets amid declining agricultural and turf demand.”