The Moline, Illinois company's worldwide employment in fiscal 2011 rose 10 percent to 61,300 people, from 55,700 at the same point a year ago. The company's headcount in the United States and Canada increased to 32,300, but it continued it fall as a percentage of the company's global workforce.
Deere's employment numbers were disclosed in the company's annual report for the fiscal year ended Oct. 31.
"Our growth is apparent both in North America and across the world," Deere spokesman Kenneth Golden said, noting that an increasing amount of positions being filled at Deere are related to higher-tech responsibilities.
He said the company is "seeing fairly similar growth in all of our regions and both in production and manufacturing as well as professional and administrative positions." He said most new U.S. jobs were added to large factories in the upper Midwest.
Golden said the company was bigger in the 1970s than its current size, before an industry wide downturn that took place during the Reagan administration.
Deere has seen strong demand for a wide range of its products, including combines, tractors and bulldozers. The company owns or leases 23 factory locations in North America and also has operations outside the region, including in Brazil, China, Germany, India, Russia and Spain.
Deere Rises Amid Murky Job Picure
The company's employment boom stands in contrast to some of its industrial peers, which have been shrinking global operations and selling off entire businesses to cut costs and better navigate economic uncertainty.
Last week, 3M Co offered early retirement to nearly 5,000 employees. In Wisconsin, 950 Harley-Davidson employees have until Dec. 23 to accept a voluntary layoff package.
Deere reported record results in 2011, including $2.8 billion in net income on $29.5 billion in annual sales. For 2012, the company forecasts about a 15 percent increase in revenue and a 21 percent uptick in net profit.
Despite current good times, Deere has had its own recent experience with job cuts, having slashed employment by 10 percent in 2009 to about 51,000 people globally and 28,000 in North America.
As Deere has grown, its workforce has become increasingly international. In 2011, about 53 percent of its employees were located in North America, compared with 56 percent in 2008 and about 64 percent in 2000.
In the past year alone, Deere's equipment sales outside North America as a percentage of total sales increased to 41 percent in 2011 from 37 percent.
Still, the bulk of the company's operating profit continues to be made in the United States- and Canada. (Reuters)
