John Deere Cuts 300 Positions at Corporate Headquarters
Approximately 300 employees at John Deere’s corporate headquarters in Moline, Ill. were added to the growing list of layoffs enacted by the agricultural and construction equipment manufacturer in recent months.
The company has permanently laid off nearly 2,000 employees over the past several months.
Positions involved with the corporate headquarters staff reductions included managers, supervisors, engineers, analysts, attorneys, and more.
Salaried workers affected by the layoffs will reportedly receive severance pay, access to health and wellness benefits, paid-out vacation and time off, as well as compensation benefits.
“While the decision to reduce roles across the company was a challenging one, the company is confident that these adjustments, coupled with our ongoing efforts to reduce costs and align production and inventory levels, will position John Deere strongly for the future,” the company’s statement on the lay-off reports said.
In addition, Deere officials have said that the laid-off employees receive supplemental unemployment pay, which the company suggests covers about 95% of their weekly pay when combined with state unemployment benefits, for up to 26 weeks, depending on how long they've worked with the company. Added health care and transitional aid are available for laid-off employees based on how long they worked for the company.
Various media outlets have reported that more layoffs are expected at other Moline-based John Deere facilities.
The company has justified the recent staff reductions based on reduced customer demand and rising manufacturing and operational costs.
According to the John Deere Q2 earnings call, sales are expected to drop nearly 20% from 2023 to 2024.
In conjunction with the reduced sales and increased costs, the company announced in July an intent to move manufacturing of skid steer loaders and compact track loaders to Mexico by the end of 2026.
UAW calls layoffs "corporate greed"
The United Auto Workers union, which represents the bulk of John Deere employees, describes the layoff actions as being driven by “corporate greed.”
“John Deere’s reckless layoffs and job cuts are an insult to the working-class people of Iowa and Illinois, and the United Auto Workers will fight for justice for our members and communities affected by these moves,” the union said. Let’s be clear: there is no need for Deere to kill good American jobs and outsource them to Mexico for cheap labor. The company is forecasted to make $7 billion in profit this year. CEO John May’s total compensation for 2023 was $26.8 million.”
Continuing, the UAW statement noted that John Deere has spent $43.6 billion on stock buybacks and dividends over the past two decades, seemingly leaving no question that there is enough profit to go around.
According to the UAW statement, John Deere is implementing the layoffs because the company’s “corporate greed” is more important than its people.
“When a company is doing as well as John Deere, on the hard work of those UAW members who make the product that generates those profits, there is no reason for job cuts, layoffs, outsourcing, or cutbacks. We will keep pushing for justice at Deere and keep letting corporate America know that the working class will not accept the scraps while the CEOs and shareholders get richer and richer,” the UAW statement concluded.
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