John Deere Announces It’s Moving Some Production Out of Dubuque

Less than a week after the company announced nearly 200 layoffs in nearby Waterloo, the largest employer in Dubuque has confirmed that they will be relocating some of their production outside of the country.

Per KWWL, John Deere is working to acquire land in the city of Ramos, Mexico to build a brand new facility. The new facility is expected to be in operation in 2026, with production from the Dubuque Works plant to be shifted to Mexico. John Deere Works is currently the largest employer in the Dubuque area with over 2,800 employees.

John Deere provided a statement to KWWL, revealing the planned shift in production down to Mexico:

Friday’s announcement at Dubuque Works reflects John Deere’s commitment to evolving its business model, products, and processes to address rising manufacturing costs and improve operational efficiencies. This includes optimizing our factories for future products, making our operations more efficient, and taking advantage of locations in the U.S. and globally, with a growing labor force. - John Deere's statement on the forthcoming Ramos facility, per KWWL

In the statement, John Deere noted that they are in the process of acquiring the aforementioned land in Ramos. When the facility is operational in 2026, production of mid-frame skid steer loaders and compact track loaders will be moved from Dubuque Works to Ramos.

Moreover, Dubuque Works will continue to manufacture large-frame skid steer loaders and compact track loaders; backhoes; crawler loaders; knuckle boom loaders; and various other pieces of equipment.

For John Deere's Construction & Forestry business, the building and subsequent opening of a new facility in Ramos allows them to remain competitive in their manufacturing operation. Per KWWL, Deere expects to ramp down production of mid-frame skid steer loaders and compact track loaders in Dubuque in early 2026 ahead of the transition to production in Mexico.

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This move obviously instills concern and trepidation amongst loyal John Deere Dubuque Works employees in the area, their families, and the community at large. This news also follows nearly 200 employees at John Deere in Waterloo losing their jobs to layoffs last week:

John Deere informed members of the workforce at its Waterloo Operations in Waterloo, Iowa, that approximately 190 production employees will be placed on indefinite layoff effective June 22. Employees were told of the layoffs by factory leadership in meetings today. -John Deere's statement on Waterloo layoffs, per KWWL

In totality, John Deere has terminated nearly 500 jobs in 2024. Find out more about the John Deere's planned Ramos facility on KWWL's website.