How Many People Have Lost Jobs At John Deere in Iowa and Illinois

We've seen story after story about one of the largest employers in the Midwest and the largest in the Quad Cities cutting jobs. But when the stories and numbers trickle out it's hard to grasp how many jobs and how many families have felt the impact. Once they are added up...the John Deere layoffs are quite staggering.

John Deere Record Production and Profits

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It was just a few years ago that the company announced record profits. Both 2021 and 2022 were record years. John Deere was hiring and the product was being shipped out at a record pace.

Corn and soybean prices were soaring at that time. And farmers were taking advantage of economic relief money from the government during the 2020 and 2021 Covid years. Farmers across the country upgraded their equipment since the money was coming in and in some cases had to be used.

Since then, things have changed in the economy. In June 2022 corn prices peaked at $7.38 a bushel. Now they are $4.51. Soybean prices once at $17.69 a bushel are now trading at $10.55.

So farmers are making less and getting less to no government incentives, so they aren't spending the money to upgrade equipment.

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While less demand is forcing cuts, John Deere is also self-inflicting cuts by moving some production facilities to Mexico. Deere announced the manufacturing of skid steer loaders and compact track loaders will be moving from the Dubuque facility to Mexico by the end of 2026.

While company earnings are still in the billions, they aren't what they used to be. Income for the second quarter of 2024 was $8.53 per share. End of the second quarter in 2023 had income at $9.65 per share.

CEO of John Deere John C. May said in a statement, "We are proactively managing our production and inventory levels to adapt to demand changes and position the business for the future."

May, whose total compensation in 2023 was $26.72 million, continued by saying "Despite market conditions, we are committed to our strategy and are actively investing in and deploying innovative technologies, products, and solutions to ensure our customers' success."

John Deere Has Cut 2700 Jobs In Less Than A Year

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You may have seen stories about layoffs at certain locations and the number of people affected, but when they are added up the number really shows the impact of the cuts.

The Quad City Times did the research going back to October of 2023 to figure out how many, and from where all the layoffs are coming.

There have been an announced 2,701 layoffs in Iowa and Illinois. With 1,313 of those coming from the Quad Cities.

Breaking it down by location in the Quad Cities:

Harvester Works - East Moline: 525
Cylinder Works - Moline: 288
Davenport Works - Davenport: 211
World Headquarters - Moline: 289

Cuts have happened before at John Deere during downtimes. And when things pick back up they have historically filled those positions. However, this round is hitting home hard, and with jobs being shipped out of the country the prospect of them coming back in the same numbers looks more bleak than in the past.