CHICAGO (Reuters) - Deere & Co. on Friday announced indefinite layoffs for 42 employees in Waterloo, Iowa as part of the company’s effort to become a more efficient organization.
The Moline, Illinois-based company is trying to cut costs to make itself more profitable. It is aiming to boost operating profit margin to 15% by 2022 from 12.5% projected for this year.
The steps are part of a broader trend in the U.S. manufacturing sector which is battling a downturn.
Deere’s shares were last trading down 2.8% at $155.47 in afternoon trade on Friday.
Since late last year, the world’s largest farm equipment maker has, thus far, announced over 460 layoffs in the United States.
Nearly three-fourths of those cuts have taken place at its facilities in Iowa, which could be a crucial state in this year’s presidential election. In the 2018 mid-term elections, two Republicans lost their re-election bids to the U.S. House of Representatives, giving Democrats a majority of the four congressional districts.
The company is also carrying out a voluntary separation program for its salaried employees.
The layoffs at Waterloo Works, which manufactures Deere’s largest tractors, would come into effect on May 4.
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