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Strike Begins Against Deere

WVIK, Quad Cities NPR | By Herb Trix

Published October 15, 2021 at 6:14 AM CDT

outside the John Deere Cylinder Works in Moline

The strike affects 10,000 workers at 14 Deere facilities across the country.

Last weekend, union members overwhelmingly rejected a possible contract that included an hourly wage hike totaling $1.20 over six years. They say that's not enough at a time when Deere is earning record profits.

A union spokesman says they're holding out for "the ability to earn a decent living, retire with dignity, and to establish fair work rules."

A statement from the company says, "We will keep working day and night to understand our employees' priorities and resolve this strike, while also keeping our operations running for the benefit of all those we serve."

Herb Trix

A native of Detroit, Herb Trix began his radio career as a country-western disc jockey in Roswell, New Mexico (“KRSY, your superkicker in the Pecos Valley”), in 1978. After a stint at an oldies station in Topeka, Kansas (imagine getting paid to play “Louie Louie” and “Great Balls of Fire”), he wormed his way into news, first in Topeka, and then in Freeport Illinois.

See stories by Herb Trix