MOLINE, Ill. — Hundreds of Quad Cities Deere workers will be out of a job within months.
The company attributes the layoffs to decreased demand for the products made at the affected plants in Davenport, Moline and East Moline.
Christina Bohannan, congressional candidate for Iowa's first district, said low crop prices and an expired farm bill are making farmers uncertain.
"When our farmers don’t have a farm bill, they don't know what's coming next," Bohannan said. "They don’t know what the terms of that farm bill are, they don’t know what their crop insurance will look like. They don’t know whether they’ll have access to low-interest loans or other programs that they can access to pay for some of this equipment."
She said lower sales force Deere to make tough decisions, too.
"I do understand that there is a decrease in demand for some of their equipment, and of course as a company they have to plan for going forward and take action on some of that, and I do understand that that’s a complicated issue," Bohannan said.
She also said her heart goes out to the families of impacted workers.
Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R - Iowa) shared this statement with News 8:
"These layoffs unfortunately now leave hundreds of Quad City families in economic uncertainty.
"These additional layoffs are a consequence of Biden-Harris Administration policies, including a lack of robust trade policy, high interest rates leading to a lack of consumer spending, and high costs of production which force farmers and contractors to forego new farm equipment purchases.
"My office stands ready to help impacted Iowans."
Across the river, Joe McGraw, congressional candidate for Illinois' 17th district, said it's more expensive than ever to be a farmer.
"It's [a] situation where the costs keep going up and up and up for the farmers, and the price of machinery keeps going up and up and up," McGraw said.
He said the lack of a farm bill, and the current economy, contribute to the decline in Deere's sales. He said Deere needs to do what it can to stay in business.
"When you've got a government that is not committed to a robust economy — which you can't have when you have such high inflation rates, such high interest rates — everybody pulls back, everybody hunkers down," McGraw said.
Representative Eric Sorensen (D - Illinois) shared this statement:
“Every day, I’m proud to be a Quad Citizen and call this place my home. We have a special way of life here, we take pride in what we do, and how we do it. Deere & Company is part of the fabric of the Quad Cities and the UAW workers who build the Seeders & Harvesters that are used around the world help our community thrive and grow.
“Today is a hard day for our Quad Cities community and I pledge to do everything that I’m able to support the workers affected by these layoffs. Our Congressional Office has the resources to connect affected workers with services and benefits. We will work hand-in-hand with our partners in the Governor’s Office and UAW to make sure that we do everything we can to support workers.”
“Representing our district on the House Agriculture Committee has always been important, and it is clear from today’s decision that now more than ever we need to pass a bipartisan Farm Bill. Critical programs that impact the price of corn and soy are running out of money and need to be replenished and updated. This affects Deere & Company’s production and impacts workers as much as our family farmers. We must get a bipartisan Farm Bill passed, which will open up opportunities for Deere.
“Deere & Company’s annual profits exceed $7 billion. Today’s stock price exceeded $410 per share. C-suite salaries are in the tens of millions of dollars. They can afford to better take care of their workers in John Deere’s hometown.”
This round of layoffs will go into effect on Jan. 3.