Deere and Company will lay off 900 workers in Iowa and Illinois to handle an anticipated declines in sales of farm equipment. Deere announced Friday, that 565 employees at three Waterloo facilities will lose their jobs, along with 300 at the Des Moines Works in Ankeny.
Company spokesman, Ken Golden, says no one should be surprised. “In November we had indicated our forecast for 2015 was considerably lower for sales overall — especially in the ag and turf division. And so, today’s announcement reflects what we had indicated in November,” Golden says. “And it results in changes in our workforce in the ag division, and changes in our workforce in the construction and forestry division.”
The impact in the Quad Cities will not be as harsh as in Waterloo and Ankeny. The job cuts there include 45 positions, plus a 500 employees will be on a shutdown that is longer than normal. “It would hard to estimate how normal shutdowns take place because it all depends on the products and how much we’re selling,” Golden says. “This particular shutdown is an extended shutdown, but the difference is, these employees do have an expected call back date.”
Deere also announced it has added 110 jobs at the Davenport Works and 110 at the Dubuque Works. Both factories make construction and forestry equipment. And Golden says the company had rehired many workers who lost their jobs building farm equipment last year.