Furious farmers have threatened to stop buying John Deere tractors.
The 187-year-old firm – the leading manufacturer of agricultural machinery – said on Wednesday it is laying off even more workers.
The nearly 300 layoffs in Iowa and Illinois take the total this year to around 2,100.
At the same time, Deere is moving more of its tractor and farming gear manufacturing to Mexico.
‘I’ll never buy another John Deere tractor or any other of their products,’ wrote one famer today on Reddit.
Another added: ‘John Deere is loyal to shareholders, NOT employees or even customers. Anything they say otherwise is propaganda.’
John Deere produces a wide range of equipment, including tractors, combine harvesters, construction vehicles, mowers, and snowmobiles. The company is facing backlash for its ongoing plan to lay off more American workers and shift production to Mexico.
Massey-Ferguson – a rival to John Deere – is known for its red tractors
Another – referring to rival Massey-Ferguson and its red tractors – wrote: ‘Looks like a lot of color changes will happen the next few years I predict a lot more red in fields.’
John Deere is the market leader in the US by some margin. It means fields across the country are mostly ploughed and harvested machines emblazoned in its distinctive green and yellow.
The company also sells heavy duty garden gear too.
History of John Deere
Portrait of John Deere, who founded the company
The company, these days known for its green tractors and iconic leaping deer logo, was established nearly two centuries ago in 1837.
In its early days, it produced self scouring steel plows, which revolutionized farming and replaced the inferior cast iron plow that would often get 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’s expanded quite a bit since its humble beginnings, boasting a total of 109 factories and offices globally.
Many of the company’s dozens of factories in the US are the largest employers in small Midwest towns, making it devastating when dozens or even hundreds are suddenly out of job and don’t have many places to turn.
The 2,100 layoffs are across several Iowa sites – 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 factory in East Moline, Illinois. Additionally, 80 workers in Davenport, Iowa will also lose their jobs, along with seven in Moline, Illinois.
They were the latest batch of layoffs this year, after 103 jobs were also cut in July, for the company founded 187 years ago.
In many instances, production that these US workers were responsible for is being shifted to new locations in Mexico.
But the company insisted Wednesday that the layoffs are unrelated to its production moving to Mexico.
Instead, bosses attributed the job cuts to a decline in demand for tractors and other agricultural equipment, which has resulted from falling crop prices and farmers reducing their expenditures.
Movement of production to Mexico has attracted the attention of politicians.
Donald Trump said in September that he will slap a 200 percent tariff on John Deere’s imports into the US if the company goes ahead with plans to move production to Mexico.
At the start of the year, John Deere employed about 22,600 salaried and production workers across the two states.
The company has pointed to a 20 percent fall in sales from 2023 to 2024.
More layoffs are expected – despite John Deere raking in over $10 billion in profit in 2023 while also paying CEO John May $26.7 million in total compensation.
John Deere said it is still committed to US manufacturing. Bosses pointed to a $2 billion investment in US factories since 2019.
Former US President George W. Bush (L) watches welders work on a John Deere combine during a factory tour on January 14, 2002 in Moline in Illinois
John Deere staff work on farming equipment. The company is laying off workers
A John Deere factory in Brazil. The company is moving production there, as well as Mexico
More than 10,000 workers at John Deere went on strike for five weeks in 2021. They won a 10 percent raise for hourly earners and increased retirement benefits
In a statement to DailyMail.com Wednesday, John Deere said: ‘It is important to note these layoffs are due to reduced demand for the products produced at these facilities.
Employees are furious at the cuts.
A longtime John Deere worker at the Harvester Works plant in East Moline, Illinois, said it comes down to one thing: Greed.
‘We get wind of more layoffs daily, it seems, and it’s causing uncertainty all over,’ said the worker, who stayed anonymous for fear of retaliation.
‘They are not related to production moves.
‘As we have repeatedly stated, layoffs this fiscal year are due to the weakening farm economy and a reduction in customer orders for our equipment.’
