CNH Confirms "Tentative" Plan to Close Case Backhoe Plant in Iowa

CNH Industrial says it "tentatively" plans to close its Burlington, Iowa, manufacturing plant and move production elsewhere in the U.S. and Europe.

The plant produces Case Construction Equipment backhoes and other light equipment and employs about 350 people. CNH explained "tentative" as meaning it will undergo a bargaining process with the United Auto Workers union. CNH cited the need to streamline operations and cut costs for the closing.

Nick Guernsey, president of the United Auto Workers Local 807, which represents the Burlington factory workers, confirmed to Equipment World that the union was notified of the plant closing November 7. 

According to Guernsey, the tentative plan would close the factory in the second quarter of 2026, and all Burlington employees would be laid off. The union's current contract with CNH ends in May 2026. 

“The company said it’s so expensive to produce the product in Burlington as opposed to anywhere else,” said Guernsey. “Where they said the product was going to go to doesn’t make sense for several different reasons. But at the end of the day, the business wants everything made as cheaply as possible.”

The Burlington plant produces Case light construction equipment, including diesel and electric backhoes, rough-terrain forklifts and utility tractors. The site also performs product development of backhoe loaders, tractor loaders and forklifts.

CNH issued the following statement to Equipment World:

“CNH has tentatively decided to move the production of backhoes, tractor loaders and rough-terrain forklifts out of the Burlington plant to other CNH facilities in the U.S. and Europe. If this tentative decision is finalized, then upon completion of this move, the Burlington site, which currently has approximately 350 employees, will be closed. This decision is part of the company’s continuous global initiatives to streamline operations, minimize costs and bolster competitiveness in a changing market.

“The decision is described as ‘tentative’ because it is subject to a process known as ‘decisional bargaining.’ The UAW, which represents the hourly employees at Burlington, was contacted on November 7 and will be provided the opportunity to engage in the decision bargaining process.” 

The employees at the Burlington plant, along with CNH's plant in Racine, Wisconsin, went on a nine-month strike in 2022. The strike ended when workers ratified a new three-year contract on January 23, 2023, set to expire in May 2026.