Against the back of the biggest fall in farm income in the US in two decades, tyre maker Bridgestone-Firestone has announced layoffs at its Des Moines, Iowa, plant, where most of the company’s tractor tyres are produced.
It declined to say how many, but a notice listed the total as 118.
The Bridgestone factory, which first opened in 1945, produces tyres for agricultural, construction, forestry and off-road uses. The plant is part of Bridgestone’s wide US manufacturing network, with 19 factories across 11 states.
In a statement, the company said it “regularly evaluates all aspects of its business to ensure we remain competitive and resources are allocated in a manner that best supports our business strategy. We notified local United Steelworkers (USW) leadership in Des Moines that we have made the difficult decision to reduce positions due to demand constraints in the agriculture tyre sector. We aim to minimise the impact on our teammates as much as possible and will continue to communicate directly with our teammates. Bridgestone is confident this move will enable us to operate more cost effectively in strengthening our business model and to deliver on our long-term growth potential.”
The lay-offs at the plant will dovetail with announcements of workforce reductions and early retirement offers at tractor and agricultural equipment maker John Deere’s plants in Ankeny, Waterloo and Ottumwa and at its Intelligent Solutions Group in Urbandale.
Since March, Deere, the world’s biggest manufacturer of farm machinery, has announced 892 job cuts in Iowa.
Bridgestone, too, has been contending with falling truck and bus tyre demand in North America, Europe and China. Demand in North America was down 18% year over year and down 15% globally.
Global CEO Shuichi Ishibashi noted early in the year that the company’s top priority this year was to “improve and reinforce business quality.”