Furious farmers have threatened to stop buying John Deere tractors.
The 187-year-old company – the leading manufacturer of agricultural equipment – said Wednesday it will lay off more employees.
The nearly 300 layoffs in Iowa and Illinois bring the total this year to about 2,100.
At the same time, Deere is moving more of its tractor and farm equipment production to Mexico.
“I will never buy a John Deere tractor or any other product from them again,” one farmer wrote today Reddit.
Another added: ‘John Deere is loyal to the shareholders, NOT the employees or even the customers. Anything they say otherwise is propaganda.”
John Deere produces a wide range of equipment, including tractors, combines, construction vehicles, mowers and snowmobiles. The company is facing backlash over its ongoing plan to lay off more U.S. workers and move production to Mexico.
Massey-Ferguson – a rival of John Deere – is known for its red tractors
Another – referring to rival Massey-Ferguson and its red tractors – wrote: ‘Looks like there will be a lot of color changes over the next few years. I predict a lot more red in the fields.’
John Deere is the market leader in the US by some margin. It means that fields across the country are largely plowed and harvested by machines, adorned with the distinctive green and yellow.
The company also sells heavy duty gardening equipment.
History of John Deere
Portrait of John Deere, who founded the company
The company, known today for its green tractors and iconic leaping deer logo, was founded almost two centuries ago in 1837.
In its early days it produced self-cleaning steel plows, which revolutionized agriculture and replaced the inferior cast-iron plow that often got stuck in sticky soil.
Today, John Deere – which still bears its founder’s name – produces everything from tractors, construction vehicles, mowers and even snowmobiles.
It has expanded considerably since its humble beginnings and has a total of 109 factories and offices worldwide.
Many of the company’s dozens of factories across the U.S. are the largest employers in small Midwestern towns, making it devastating when dozens or even hundreds suddenly lose their jobs and don’t have many places to turn.
The 2,100 layoffs will take place at several locations in Iowa – Ankeny, Dubuque, Ottumwa, Urbandale, Waterloo – plus Davenport and East Moline in Illinois, as well as a research center in Urbandale.
Wednesday’s layoffs affect about 200 production workers at the harvester plant in East Moline, Illinois. In addition, 80 employees in Davenport, Iowa, will lose their jobs, along with seven in Moline, Illinois.
It was the latest series of layoffs this year, after 103 jobs were also cut in July at the company founded 187 years ago.
In many cases, the production for which these American workers were responsible is moved to new locations in Mexico.
But the company emphasized Wednesday that the layoffs have nothing to do with the move of production to Mexico.
Instead, bosses attributed the job losses to a drop in demand for tractors and other farm equipment, which was the result of falling crop prices and farmers cutting spending.
Relocation of production to Mexico has attracted the attention of politicians.
Donald Trump said in September that he will impose a 200 percent tariff on John Deere’s U.S. imports if the company goes ahead with plans to move production to Mexico.
At the beginning of the year, John Deere had approximately 22,600 employees and production workers in the two states.
The company points to a 20 percent decline in sales between 2023 and 2024.
More layoffs are expected – despite John Deere raking in more than $10 billion in profits by 2023, with CEO John May also paying $26.7 million in total compensation.
John Deere said it remains committed to American manufacturing. Bosses pointed to a $2 billion investment in US factories since 2019.
Former U.S. President George W. Bush (L) watches welders work on a John Deere combine during a factory tour on January 14, 2002 in Moline, Illinois
John Deere employees work on agricultural machinery. The company is laying off employees
A John Deere factory in Brazil. The company is moving production there, as well as to Mexico
More than 10,000 employees at John Deere will strike for five weeks in 2021. They received a 10 percent raise in hourly wages and higher pension benefits
In a statement to DailyMail.com, John Deere said on Wednesday: ‘It is important to note that these layoffs are the result of reduced demand for the products produced at these facilities.
Employees are furious about the cuts.
A longtime John Deere employee at the Harvester Works plant in East Moline, Illinois, said it comes down to one thing: greed.
“We’re hearing of more layoffs every day, it seems, and it’s causing uncertainty everywhere,” said the employee, who remained anonymous for fear of reprisals.
‘They have nothing to do with production movements.
“As we have stated repeatedly, this fiscal year’s layoffs are due to the weakening agricultural economy and a decline in customer orders for our equipment.”
