John Deere to Cut Jobs at Iowa and Illinois Factories

Deere & Co. is set to lay off approximately 600 employees due to decreasing demand for its agricultural equipment. The company announced that the job cuts will affect production roles at two Iowa plants and one in Moline, Illinois. Specifically, 280 workers in Moline will be laid off effective August 30. In Iowa, the Davenport facility will see 211 positions eliminated, while 99 jobs will be cut in Dubuque, totaling 310 layoffs in the state.

These reductions come after Deere reported a 15% drop in revenue for the second quarter in May, marking the third consecutive quarter of declining sales. The company projected further decreases in sales for the latter half of the fiscal year and stated that it would "take proactive steps to reduce production and inventory."

Deere's profit for the quarter was $2.37 billion, down from $2.86 billion in the same period last year. The company has revised its full-year profit forecast for 2024 downward for the second time, as farmers are purchasing fewer tractors and other equipment due to lower crop prices.

The latest layoffs represent about 14% of the over 4,000 production and maintenance jobs at the three affected facilities. Deere employs more than 80,000 people globally. The company's shares dropped 1.6% in morning trading and have fallen about 7.5% since the beginning of the year.

Recently, AGCO also announced a reduction of approximately 6% of their workforce.