Over 100 employees at John Deere’s Seeding and Cylinder operations in Moline, Illinois, face layoffs in the coming weeks.
John Deere confirmed the layoffs to News 8 on July 29. Deere has notified employees at the operations in Moline, Illinois, of indefinite layoffs effective in three phases on the following dates:
- August 16: 43 production employees
- August 30: 55 production employees
- October 4: 36 production employees
The city of Moline has acknowledged the wave of layoffs in a social media post.
In the past three months, John Deere has laid off more than 1,000 employees company-wide. This includes approximately 345 production employees at its Waterloo, Iowa, facilities and an additional 170 across Waterloo, Johnston, and Dubuque. Deere officials attribute these layoffs to decreased customer demand and rising operating costs.
Last month, the company announced plans to relocate the manufacturing of skid steer loaders and compact track loaders from its Dubuque plant to Mexico by the end of 2026. The layoffs have been met with backlash, which has questioned the Illinois-based company’s continued operations at its manufacturing hub in Mexico.
Cory Reed, president of Deere & Co.’s worldwide agriculture and turf division for production and precision agriculture in the Americas and Australia, informed U.S. Farm Report that the Mexico facility, which has been operational for nearly 70 years, is “an important part of our global footprint.”
John Deere released a statement addressing the layoffs:
“As the leading global manufacturer of agricultural equipment, John Deere, like many others in the industry, is facing significant economic challenges, including rising global operational and manufacturing costs, and reduced customer demand.”
Deere maintains that the layoffs are a result of decreased demand for products manufactured at Seeding and Cylinder.
“According to our second-quarter earnings call, industry sales are projected to decline by 20 percent from 2023 to 2024,” reads the Deere website’s statement made on July 23. “Despite the current drop in customer demand, John Deere remains committed to U.S.-based manufacturing, employing about 30,000 people in over 60 U.S.-based facilities across 16 states.”
A Deere spokesperson also noted to reporters that “employees are eligible to be recalled to their home factory for a period equal to their length of service” and that laid-off employees have automatic seniority for qualified openings.
Additionally, the company stated that laid-off employees receive supplemental unemployment pay for up to 26 weeks, depending on their tenure with the company. This pay covers approximately 95 percent of their weekly wages when combined with state unemployment benefits. Additional health care and transitional assistance are also available based on the duration of their employment.