United States-John Deere Tractors lay off staff.
UNITED STATES-JOHN DEERE LAY OFF STAFF.
Deere & Co. said Friday it will lay off 325 workers at its factories in Davenport and Dubuque, citing downturns in construction.
The layoffs, effective March 30, break down to 220 in Dubuque and 105 in Davenport.
Workers were told of the layoffs Friday.
Deere is Iowa’s largest manufacturing employer, with about 12,000 workers in the state.
The latest layoffs come after Deere laid off 200 employees in Davenport since the beginning of the year and 180 workers were laid off in Dubuque.
"The economy is in a mess," Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba said. "I’m not sure where laid-off workers can get new jobs right now. I hope the stimulus package can help some."
Gluba recalled that while he was a graduate student at the University of Iowa in 1965 he was laid off from the International Harvester factory in Rock Island, Ill.
"It’s a tough thing, going from a good-paying job to unemployment," Gluba said. "But we’ve been through worse in Davenport. In the early 1980s, we lost several major farm implement plants. About 25,000 jobs were gone."
In Dubuque, United Auto Workers Local 94 member Greg Krausman said of the Deere news, "You sort of expect it, but it’s still a blow."
IBM announced in January that it would build a technology services hub in the city, eventually employing 1,300 people. Hormel Foods Corp. is building an $89 million plant that will employ 180.
Rick Dickinson, executive director of the Greater Dubuque Development Corp.., said: "There are possibilities for Deere workers at the IBM facility. IBM will be looking for people who are trainable and with computer skills.
"With IBM coming and the new Hormel plant, we’ve been blessed. But this still is disappointing news."
Deere had said in its latest quarterly earnings report that it faced difficult conditions for its construction and forestry divisions and anticipated declines in sales this year.
In the first quarter report, Deere said sales in the construction division were down 28 percent, with operating profit of $18 million versus $117 million a year ago.
Deere Chairman Robert Lane told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting on Feb. 25, "The economic crisis is quite serious and should not be underestimated."
Deere’s layoffs this year have been confined to its construction and forestry division sites in Dubuque and the Quad Cities.
Its agricultural division factories in Ankeny, Ottumwa and Waterloo have not been affected.
Deere also maintains the headquarters office of its credit division in Johnston.
The latest unemployment figures for Iowa showed a jobless rate of 4.6 percent in December.
