More Iowa and Illinois John Deere Workers to be Laid Off

It may sound like a broken record, but the tune is all too familiar for John Deere employees in the area. More layoffs are coming.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that the layoffs will affect employees at three Quad City area John Deere plants. The company announced Wednesday that the layoffs will include about 200 production employees at John Deere Harvester Works in East Moline, 80 production workers at Davenport Works, and 7 workers at John Deere Seeding and Cylinder Operations in Moline.

A spokesperson for John Deere said that the reason for the layoffs in the decrease in demand for the products produced at these facilities according to the Gazette. John Deere went on to state that the layoffs this fiscal year are due to the weak farm economy and a reduction in customer orders. The company has laid off nearly 3,000 employees this fiscal year.

Rumors that John Deere will be moving production to Mexico have been swirling for a while, and the Gazette reports that the company has shot down those rumors on multiple occasions. A recently as late September the company issued a statement saying the company was "not moving to Mexico as has been reported."

The Gazette reports that laid-off employees will get unemployment pay for up to 26 weeks at 95% of their salary, and will keep their health care coverage for up to six months. They can extend the coverage to 12 months but would have to pay premiums themselves.

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