John Deere Factory in Ontario to Close, 800 Jobs Lost

(The Canadian Press)

Tractor maker Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) is closing its factory in Welland, Ont., and moving the work outside Canada by the end of 2009, costing the Ontario economy another 800 manufacturing jobs.

The Welland factory, one of the city’s largest employers, makes utility vehicles and attachments for commercial and consumer equipment and for agricultural uses.

The U.S.-based company says it’s consolidating its manufacturing operations to improve efficiency and profits, and the work will be moved to plants in Wisconsin and Mexico.

Deere, makers of the famed green-painted John Deere tractor, announced Tuesday that it will take a US$90 million after-tax hit related to the closure. It said about half of this charge will be recorded in the fourth quarter of this year.

Gator utility vehicles, now made at Welland, will move to Horicon, Wis. Cutting and loading attachments will be transferred to Deere's operations in Monterrey and Saltillo, Mexico.

On the New York Stock Exchange, the company’s shares were trading down $1.83 at $68.74.