Deere & Co To Make Workforce Adjustments At Several Factories In Iowa, Illinois

(RTTNews) - Agricultural machinery maker Deere & Co. (DE) announced Friday that it will make workforce adjustments at several factories in Iowa and Illinois. The actions include indefinite layoffs at five locations that build agricultural equipment as well as an extended inventory adjustment shutdown at another factory.

The changes will place about 910 employees on indefinite layoff from facilities in Iowa and Illinois. Deere said the approximate number of layoffs at each location include 565 total at three locations in Waterloo, IA; 300 at the Des Moines Works in Ankeny, IA; and 45 employees at Harvester Works in East Moline, IL.

In addition, approximately 500 employees at Deere's Seeding and Cylinder facility in Moline will go on an extended inventory adjustment shutdown. That location typically has a seasonal inventory adjustment this time of year. For Seeding and Cylinder employees, the adjustment shutdown is expected to end in late summer.

The layoffs begin in early February and most are effective in late March.

Meanwhile, Deere said it has added 220 new jobs at construction and forestry factories in Iowa. These two factories - Dubuque Works and Davenport Works - have each added 110 new jobs. Deere said nearly all of these positions have been filled by individuals who had been working for Deere at other locations but were laid off after the company announced workforce reductions at agricultural equipment factories in August.