John Deere cuts staff globally as sales decline, production shifts to Mexico

What’s happening at John Deere?

John Deere is laying off a large number of salaried employees across its global workforce today, but the company is not saying how many are losing their jobs. Employees across the company were called in to morning meetings on Wednesday, reports the Quad-City Times and numerous other media outlets.

In a recent statement, Deere attributed the need for action to economic challenges, rising costs, and a 20% decline in sales from 2023 to 2024.

Official statements and context

In a statement Wednesday, John Deere said “as the largest global manufacturer of agricultural equipment, John Deere, like many others in our industry, faces significant economic challenges, rising operational and manufacturing costs, and reduced customer demand,” according to the Des Moines Register.

The economic challenges “have unfortunately forced us to make tough decisions including layoffs at John Deere production facilities and reductions in our global salaried workforce,” the manufacturer said.

On July 15, Deere announced in a letter that starting Wednesday, the company would be “implementing additional global salary workforce reductions.” The letter asked salaried employees to work from home Wednesday to Friday and postpone any business travel.

John Deere has promised the following support for employees impacted in the US:

• Up to 12 months of severance based on years of service.
• Pro-rated short-term incentive (STI) and long-term incentive cash (LTIC) compensation benefits.
• Payment for any earned and unused vacation or paid time off.
• Ongoing health and wellness benefits.
• 12 months of professional job placement services.

“While the decision to reduce roles across the company was a challenging one, the company is confident that these adjustments, coupled with our ongoing efforts to reduce costs and align production and inventory levels, will position John Deere strongly for the future,” stated the company.

Shifting production

Since September 2023, more than 1,600 John Deere employees have been laid off from plants across the United States. US workers have accused the company of acting on “greed” as it continues to shift manufacturing and production to Mexico.

Impact in Canada

It remains unclear exactly how many John Deere employees in Canada will lose their job as a result of this layoff.

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